PROVO — The angry masses who voice passionate dismay over radio talk shows and the Internet may demand BYU football coach Gary Crowton be run out of town, but his wife, Maren, runs her own game — just protecting her family privacy and weathering storms.
You could describe Maren Crowton as the opposite of her counterpart in this week's rivalry week showdown, Utah's Shelley Meyer, who doesn't object to a role in the media frenzy that gobbles up sound and picture bites in coverage of college football.
"I think Shelley does a great job being in the spotlight," Gary Crowton said. But it isn't for his bride.
Maren prefers a nondescript identity behind the scenes so she can sneak out of the grocery store or mall unnoticed. The reason is her seven children, all of whom live at home. Everywhere she goes, her husband, coach Crowton, is mobbed and cornered as she shuffles away with the kids.
She avoids being featured on TV or newspaper photos. It just makes life easier.
And whether her husband is on top, like in 2001, or under fire like this season, it's still a priority for Maren Crowton to keep the privacy fence up.
"It's better that way," she said Tuesday in a rare interview with several reporters by telephone. "Gary protects me only at my request. This business can really get rough at times. When I'm out with the kids, I don't want to be recognized. I like to come and go without having all the hassle."
It's just the opposite with Crowton. He's a visible coach at a high-profile job, and he's under fire. His successful TV ads pitching BYU season tickets the past three seasons has added to his celebrity.
With airwaves filled with rancor aimed toward her husband this season, Maren understands the issues and knows it comes with the job. But it doesn't mean she abandons her own plan.
"Most of our kids are too little to realize what's going on. They should concern themselves with things kids worry about like school, having fun, making friends and play. Of course, our older kids hear things. There's no way you can prevent that."
"I've got a great wife," Crowton said. "She has great perspective on wins and losses, and the nature of a coach's life and job. She knows the 12-2 seasons aren't everything, and neither are the ones where you are losing.
"She stays on an even keel, just steady. And she is good for me. Whenever I get worked up, she tells me to calm down, that it's not as bad as it seems.
"Conversely, when we beat No. 1 Notre Dame while at Boston College, or when we were 12-2 in 2001, she again reminded me everything wasn't as it seems."
Still, it bothered the Crowtons in Chicago when the husband was the toast of the town in his first year. The next season the Bears battled. Sixth-grader Tara went to school one day, and her teacher made a comment about her dad. "I couldn't believe it, a teacher would do that," Maren said.
Tara, who is feisty and outspoken, shot right back and got into it. When another school kid made fun of her father, she replied: "Well, what does your dad do? Should I say he stinks? At least my dad has an exciting job."
The older son, Dane, is a little different. "He kind of internalizes it a little," Maren said. "But that's something the older ones have to deal with."
Gary and Maren have seven children. In all their travels in coaching circles, neither has come across a head coach who has seven children. That all seven remain in the Crowton household adds to the uniqueness of their situation.
The Crowtons have been married 18 years and moved frequently with coaching jobs as he climbed the ladder through college to the NFL and to BYU. The longest they've planted themselves was in Ruston, La., for a period of four years at Louisiana Tech. "We're working on breaking that record here in Utah," Maren said.
The one retreat the family has had over the years is returning to Utah for vacations. Since they moved back to Utah, they have yet to find another retreat. Maren Peterson Crowton is from Bountiful, and her husband is from Orem. They met at Snow College and married Aug. 3, 1985.
This past summer the family escaped to Disneyland for a few days. During BYU's bye week between the Boise State and Notre Dame game, a friend offered them a weekend stay in Park City. They found a babysitter and didn't bring their youngest — 26-month-old son Macloud.
"It was wounderful," Maren said. "It was nice to have a break and get away and be alone for a while. I loved it."
Today it is one more week, one more game, another disappointing season of criticism for the coach.
Maren is unsure of how the next 60 days will go in regard to the Crowton's taking a vacation or spending some time together away from football.
"Gary's been really tied up in this season, trying to evaluate what is going on and what to do about it. When the season is over on Saturday, he's immediately into recruiting plans and will be traveling. I'm unsure of when we'll get back to family, but that's part of the job of coaching and I accept it and support what he does. It's part of the deal."
And so is her fence. You wouldn't recognize her unless you knew her, and few people do.
E-mail: dharmon@desnews.com