Tom Crowell grew up in a big football family, so naturally his son, Kellan, started playing the sport when he was in kindergarten.

"Wrestling was never in the cards," the elder Crowell said.

Still, a friend and coach approached Tom and inquired about Kellan going out for wrestling, which he declined at first.

"But we finally bit and we tried it and he took to it," Tom said.

Kellan's first tournament was at Lower Cape May Regional High School, and the young standout won both his matches. The Crowells have been hooked ever since.

Fast forward to now, Kellan is a three-time New Jersey youth champion and two-time Tulsa All-American. The standout 14-year-old captured the NUWAY Atlantic City Summer Nationals championship last summer. He went 67-2 this season.

"It means a lot," Crowell said about being a three-time state champion at an early age. "Just all that hard work that I put in, I just know it's paid off. I'm excited to see the future, and what I'm able to do."

Crowell captured the state title this season with a thrilling 3-2 decision in the 128-pound final at CURE Insurance Arena. He got a reversal with 35 seconds remaining in the third period.

"I needed a score, so I knew that I had to get on my horse," Crowell said. "I had him start moving, had to go all out for it, so I just went for it."

Crowell is proud of each title, but he admitted each season gets more difficult.

"Over the years, the skill level just keeps going up, so every competition is just harder," said Crowell, who also has earned first- and third-place medals at the Northeast Regional Freestyle Tournament in his young and successful career.

"I have just been lifting a lot. I just feel like I need to get stronger. Everything gets easier from there."

Strength is only part of the equation. Crowell knows that every match, especially at the highest level, demands more than power.

"Every match has some pressure," he said. "But definitely those big ones, you feel it."

When the pressure rises, Crowell leans on the one thing he believes separates wrestlers late in matches.

"Conditioning, conditioning, conditioning," he said. "Just having that feeling that you can keep going in the third period, late in the match, when it's close."

Crowell trains out of Apex Wrestling School in Egg Harbor Township. Apex also has a location in Mahwah, Bergen County, and Warwick, New York.

Co-founder Dane Tabano coaches out of the EHT location, and has been training Crowell since he was in second grade.

"He's a fierce competitor. He's got a very strong motor, very strong engine. He's willing to go to places that the average athlete is not willing to go," Tabano said. "He has a high-pressure threshold."

Tabano said Crowell's greatest strength is probably his relentless mindset.

"I think that's the ingredient for how he got to where he is," the coach said. "He has never said no to pressure. He has never shied away from a situation and he will push the gas pedal as hard to the floor as you want him."

Tabano said Crowell never backs away from difficult situations. Instead, Crowell embraces adversity and responds to every challenge with determination and an unmatched work ethic.

"Sometimes he's not the cleanest wrestler on the mat," Tabano said. "But he wants it more, so that's a big difference maker."

Crowell's preparation reflects that mindset.

He spends four to five days a week training with Tabano at Apex. He adds two to three weightlifting sessions to build strength. He also trains with Pat Lynch, a two-time state champion and four-time state medalist.

"He is a very good athlete. He is focused," said Lynch, a 1991 Ocean City graduate and one of New Jersey's greatest wrestlers.

Lynch went 133-4, including a 99-match win streak, with Ocean City. He wrestled at Arizona State University and Georgia State. Lynch earned All-American honors as freshman with the Devils.

"We've got a nice vision of what he wants to do," he said about Crowell. "We're just getting better every time, small steps along the way and just getting there. He's been a pleasure to coach him."

Lynch said many things set Crowell apart, like athleticism or knowledge of the sport. But Crowell's love for wrestling is what truly separates him.

"All the aspects of the sport just becomes something that you kind of just want to do and the training becomes just part of who you are. It's nice to see a kid grow into that (and) finding a sport that he really loves and dedicates himself to," Lynch said. 

Despite early success, Crowell isn't satisfied. He knows exactly where he wants to improve.

"I need to get better on bottom, getting up," he said. "Especially in those bigger matches. Those kids are really good on top. You have got to get up quick."

He said the more reps he gets in the better.

"Being in the same spot over and over again, knowing what you're doing," he said.

His future goals include more state titles, especially once he gets to high school. But he also has his sights set on some of the nation's toughest competitions, like Super 32 and Fargo.

The recent eighth grade graduate will be homeschooled this upcoming school year to compete in those national tournaments before he starts high school.

"I just love competition," Crowell said about his passion for wrestling. "I love being on the mat by myself. It's just you and no one else, it's just all up to you. Everything you learned, everything you put into the sport, it just comes in that moment."

As for Crowell's future, Tabano believes the limits haven't been found.

"His ceiling is as high as he wants it to be," he said. "I can push the ceiling a little higher for him, I can help him kind of lift it, but it's up to him. So far, he's responded to every inch of ceiling height that's been raised."

Lynch agreed.

"He's meeting the milestones he needs to meet now," he said. "We have a long-term vision, but it's the small steps along the way that you got to keep focused on. The future is wide open for him."

Tom Crowell credits much of his son's development to the coaches who have guided him since the beginning, including Tabano.

"What the future holds, that's really on him," he said. "If he keeps putting in the work like he has over the last eight years, it should be fun to watch. We are looking forward to it."