Henri Crockett making impact through foundation, Orange Bowl, boards at FSU

Henri Crockett wasn’t sure which school he would attend. But Danny Kanell kept pushing him toward Florida State on a recruiting visit.

“Danny Kanell was a big reason why I chose Florida State,” Crockett said. “His father (Daniel) was a big mentor to me. And then he convinced me to commit while I was on our trip. And I wasn’t ready to commit. I was leaning toward the University of Colorado. They had just come off a national championship. Danny Kanell heavily influenced my decision. He came over to me at dinner, ‘C’mon, man. Commit, commit, commit.’ I just did it because it was Danny.

“That’s how I committed. … Danny and I are lifetime friends. I look at his dad like my dad. We built a bond forever.”

Crockett was part of a significant pipeline from Pompano Beach (Fla.) Ely High to FSU in the early 1990s. Defensive end Tyrant Marion arrived in 1991, with Crockett following in 1992 along with his brother, running back Zach Crockett, and later defensive tackle Corey Simon in 1996.

In the days before recruiting rankings, Henri Crockett smiles and says, “I would imagine I would have been a five-star.” Crockett had 27 tackles and a sack in 1993, helping the Seminoles and Bobby Bowden win their first national title with a victory over Nebraska in the Orange Bowl. Crockett had 192 career tackles at FSU before enjoying a seven-year NFL career with the Atlanta Falcons (1997-2001) and Minnesota Vikings (2002-03) in which he accumulated 236 tackles.

Crockett’s career has come full circle. He’s a South Florida native, where he now lives and works. He won three Orange Bowls, including the national title, and is now the vice president of the Orange Bowl committee. In 2025, Crockett will be the president and the first Orange Bowl game participant to take on the leadership responsibilities of the committee.

Watching the selection process unfold, Crockett said he and committee members had been preparing to host Louisville as the ACC runner-up. While stunned as an alumni that FSU didn’t make the playoff, he feels the Seminoles have an opportunity to make a statement in the Orange Bowl against Georgia on Saturday.

“In a time of adversity we got to show that we’re an elite university,” Crockett said. “We don’t sit around and pout about it. It’s not going to change. But what can we do now, right? We can go to Miami and put on a show. I think that’s what’s important.

“You take lemons, you make lemonade. It’s time for them to come down to the Orange Bowl and make some orange juice.”

Crockett says the Orange Bowl is run by volunteers who want to make the game-week experience the best they can for players, coaches, families and fans. While there’s a perception that bowls are active for a few weeks in December, Crockett underscored the goals of community service extend year-round as they sponsor after-school programs, fill backpacks with school supplies, provide immunizations, make over school media centers and sponsor the Orange Bowl’s tennis classic.

“A lot of times people think that we just do the game," Crockett said. "But we have are much more than that. We have so many programs that we give back to the community. We're a community-driven organization.”

While he feels FSU was snubbed by the CFP committee, Crockett is excited to be an FSU alumni and hosting Mike Norvell, whom he has met on trips back to campus, as well as assistant coaches he’s known for years (Odell Haggins, Ron Dugans and Randy Shannon) and the Seminoles.

“At the Orange Bowl we pride ourselves on hospitality,” Crockett said. “We really enjoy hosting. And for me, I get a double bonus — it's Florida State. I have a personal stake in it because I do feel that we were wronged.”

Crockett also is focused on improving the lives of children in South Florida through the Henri Crockett Foundation, which is active in 10 middle and high schools. He laughs when saying most people think the foundation is focused on playing sports since that was Henri and Zack’s background. Their mission instead is technology-centric.

“Our mission is to build character and develop leaders and improve communities one child at a time,” Crockett said. “And we do that through a lot of our tech initiatives. Our main goal is to go in these inner cities and help bridge the digital gap because a lot of the kids in our communities don't even have computers at home. They don't have Internet at home.

“And once you give them the skill, you start teaching them habits. And so we opened up Innovation Lab, we're really big into coding, eSports and artificial intelligence and getting these kids to learn a skill.”

The foundation has also launched a high school scholars program, beginning with 50 students in a partnership with Florida Prepaid.

“Every kid that goes to this program will receive a Florida Prepaid scholarship, eliminating the worry about how am I going to pay for college,” Crockett said. “But at the same time, we're going to make sure that they're prepared for college, by making sure that they take SAT prep classes, essay writing classes, and then they have internship.”

Norvell has reshaped FSU’s football program, going 10-3 in 2022 and 13-0 this fall. Crockett has seen the transformation on frequent visits to Tallahassee to meet with coaches and players but also in his roles on the Florida State Foundation board and the School of Criminology’s board.

“I love the energy that he brings to the table,” Crockett said. “I love the passion. I love the knowledge. He’s really grown into something special at Florida State. I hope that we are able to keep him forever. I hope that he is like coach Bowden, that he wants to retire here. I’m sure people will be knocking on his door. But we’re just lucky to have him. I think he’s been great for our university.”

Crockett is like many Seminoles alumni players who sees similarities in Norvell with Bowden. He sees traits in Norvell that are comparable to Crockett’s head coach as well as some of the assistant coaches he spent time with on defense like Mickey Andrews and Chuck Amato.

“The people that coach Norvell has been able to bring around him says a lot about him,” Crockett said. “He’s passionate, he’s tough, he holds you accountable. It reminds me of coach Bowden a lot. He’s tough on you. And coach Amato and coach Andrews, too. They’re tough on you but they know they love you. To check a person you got to check on them. And I think that coach Norvell does a lot of checking on the kids. He’s able to really get into them and challenge them because he’s made deposits into their lives.”

Crockett likewise is making deposits into the lives of South Florida, impacting one child at a time. Whether it’s with his volunteer efforts with the Orange Bowl committee or his foundation, or with efforts in Tallahassee, Crockett’s nudge to commit to FSU was one that has impacted his life more than three decades later.

“I’m heavily active with the university and they’ve embraced me,” Crockett said. “As you make these decisions, kids got to really start thinking about the next 40 years vs. the next four.”

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