tony romo

When the Green Bay Packers last played the Dallas Cowboys in 2004, Tony Romo was a backup quarterback thrilled to be on the same Lambeau Field he'd seen so often on television while growing up, and warming up not far from his boyhood football hero, Brett Favre.
On Thursday at Dallas' Texas Stadium, Romo, a Burlington (Wis.) High School graduate, will face the Packers for the first time since he's become an NFL sensation in the last year as the Cowboys' unexpected franchise quarterback.

Thursday's matchup between the Packers and Cowboys features two teams that are both 10-1, and could decide home-field advantage for the NFC playoffs.

Favre and Romo come into this game as two of the NFL's best quarterbacks. Romo is third in the NFL with a passer rating of 105.3 points, while Favre is fifth at 101.5.

Though they're well apart in age, Favre (38) and Romo (27) share similarities in their roads to becoming the starters for two of the most decorated franchises in the NFL and in the way they play the game.

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Both were lightly recruited out of high school: Favre's only Division I scholarship offer was to Southern Mississippi, and that was as a general athlete, not necessarily a quarterback. Romo probably would have attended the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater as a football and basketball player had not Division I-AA Eastern Illinois stepped in late and offered him a football scholarship.

Both are instinctive, improvisational quarterbacks who make some of their most impressive plays outside the pocket. Favre is the more physically gifted because of his body and arm strength, but Romo's an excellent athlete with good mobility and the field vision of a great point guard in basketball.

"He's creative, a lot like I was early in my career, uses his feet," Favre said when asked if he sees any similarities between himself and Romo. "He's a lot more mobile than I am now, makes plays when plays are not there."

Romo's road to becoming the Cowboys' franchise quarterback is improbable. In high school, his favorite sport was basketball, but he surprised his coaches when he decided to concentrate on football for college. He was honorable-mention all-state in basketball as a senior, and Steve Berezowitz ― the assistant football coach and head basketball coach for Romo's high school teams ― thinks he was good enough to have played basketball at the mid-Division I level.

But Romo thought he could go the farthest in football, and he's advanced more than any of his high school coaches could have dreamed.

"What influenced him with basketball was he was a 'tweener size at 6-2," said Steve Gerber, who was Romo's football coach in high school, and like Berezowitz, stays in regular contact with his former player. "He wasn't quite quick enough to be a (point) guard. No, I didn't think this would ever happen. But it has, and it's exciting."

Romo jokes that he didn't deserve to be recruited by the likes of the University of Wisconsin in football, even though he's better in the NFL than any quarterback that school has produced in decades.

"The thing about it, I can see why (Wisconsin showed no interest). I pretty much sucked," Romo said. "Compared to some of the guys that had come out of there, I tell you what, I would not have recruited me. ... I didn't throw the football very well, a little undersized, all those things. There was nothing that said, 'Go get this guy.'"

Romo was a three-year starter at Eastern Illinois and the Division I-AA player of the year as a senior. He went undrafted mostly because of concerns about his arm strength, and signed with the Cowboys, who had Vinny Testaverde as their starter and had acquired Drew Henson as a possible quarterback of the future. Romo made the roster because Quincy Carter failed a drug test during training camp and was suspended indefinitely by the NFL.

That turned out especially well for Romo because Testaverde became his mentor. Testaverde had become a workout fiend, and had untold experiences as a 41-year-old starting quarterback at the time.

"From what I could gather, (Romo) really learned a lot about not just the game, but life as a professional athlete," Gerber said. "They spent a lot of time together. He worked very hard, not just physically, for the eventual day his opportunity would come."

Romo spent three and a half years as a backup before former Cowboys coach Bill Parcells benched Drew Bledsoe and made Romo the starter in the seventh game last season. He became a sensation because of his effective play, flair for the position and disarming personality.

Tony Romo
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Tony Romo
Dallas Cowboys ― No. 9
Quarterback
Date of Birth: April 21, 1980 (1980-04-21) (age 27)
Place of Birth: San Diego, California
Height: 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) Weight: 224 lb (102 kg)
National Football League Debut
2004 for the Dallas Cowboys
Career Highlights and Awards
College awards and honors
Pro Bowl selection (2006)

Career History
College: Eastern Illinois
Undrafted in 2003
Teams:

Dallas Cowboys (2003�present)

Stats at NFL.com
Antonio "Tony" Ramiro Romo (born April 21, 1980 in San Diego, California) is an American football quarterback who plays for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League. He was signed by the Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2003. He played college football at Eastern Illinois.

Contents
1 Early Years
2 College career
2.1 Awards and honors
3 NFL career
3.1 2006 season
3.2 2007 season
3.3 Records and Honors
4 Personal life
5 References
6 External links



Early Years
Romo was born in San Diego, California while his father was serving there in the United States Navy. His family returned to its home in Burlington, Wisconsin when he was 2 years old. Playing quarterback for the Burlington Demons his junior and senior year of High School, he was unable to lead the team to a winning record, though he did make the All-Racine County football team and was honorable mention all-state in basketball. A heavy influence on his playing style was Brett Favre. Romo grew up a Packers fan, and during his High School years, Brett was leading Green Bay to a pair of Super Bowl appearances.


College career
Romo played college football at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois. As a sophomore in 2000, Romo ranked second in Division I-AA in passing efficiency, completing 164 of 278 passes for 2,583 yards and 27 touchdowns. After the season, he was honored as an All-America honorable mention, an All-Ohio Valley Conference member, and the OVC Player of the Year. As a junior, he led Division I-AA in passing efficiency, completing 138-of-207 passes for 2,068 yards and 21 touchdowns. He was selected to the AP All-America third team, All-Ohio Valley Conference first team and the OVC Player of the Year.

On December 19, 2002, Romo was the first player in Eastern Illinois and Ohio Valley Conference history to win the Walter Payton Award, given annually to the nation's top player at the NCAA Division I-AA level. He finished his career holding school and conference records with 85 touchdown passes. He was second in school and third in conference history with 8,212 passing yards. He was also second in school history with 584 completions and 941 attempts. As a senior, he set school and conference records for completions with 258 in 407 attempts for 3,418 yards, ranked him second in conference and third in school history for a season. He threw for 34 touchdowns and scored one rushing touchdown. Romo's 3,149 yards in total offense as a senior ranked third in school and conference history. Along with the Walter Payton Award, Romo earned consensus All-America honors. He was also selected All-Ohio Valley Conference and was named OVC Player of the Year for the third straight year.


Awards and honors
3x All-OVC (2000�2002)
3x OVC Player of the Year (2000�2002)
3x All-American (2000�2002)
Walter Payton Award (2002)

NFL career
Romo attended the 2003 NFL Combine, but, despite intriguing some scouts, went undrafted during the 2003 NFL Draft. Throughout the draft, Romo was assured by Sean Payton of the Cowboys' interest (Romo was also intensely pursued by Denver head coach Mike Shanahan[1]), and shortly afterwards was signed as an undrafted rookie free agent by the Cowboys. Romo entered the 2003 training camp third on the Cowboys' depth chart behind Quincy Carter and Chad Hutchinson. In 2004, the Cowboys released quarterback Chad Hutchinson and signed veteran quarterback Vinny Testaverde and traded a third round draft pick to the Houston Texans for quarterback Drew Henson. Romo faced being cut from the roster until Quincy Carter was released following allegations of substance abuse. After Vinny Testaverde's tenure in Dallas ended in 2005, the Cowboys signed veteran quarterback Drew Bledsoe, the eighth starting quarterback for the Cowboys since 2000.

One of Romo's early career highlights was in 2004, when (as the 3rd string QB) he rushed for the winning TD with 6 seconds left in an exhibition contest against the Oakland Raiders. Elevated to the Cowboys' #2 quarterback in 2005, Romo had strong showings in the 2005 and 2006 pre-seasons. In the 2006 off-season, Sean Payton (now head coach of the New Orleans Saints), offered a third round draft pick for Romo, but Jerry Jones refused, asking for no less than a second round draft pick. Romo eventually took over the starting quarterback role from Drew Bledsoe during half time against the New York Giants on October 23.


2006 season
Romo began the season as a backup to starter Drew Bledsoe. Romo first saw the field on October 1st. His first NFL pass was a 33 yard completion to Sam Hurd vs. the Houston Texans on the same day. During the same game, Romo threw his first NFL touchdown pass to Terrell Owens.

Three weeks later on October 23, 2006, Romo replaced Drew Bledsoe for the start of the second half. His first pass was tipped and intercepted. His game stats in only his second NFL appearance were: 14 completions on 25 attempts for 227 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 3 interceptions. Two days later, on October 25, Cowboys head coach Bill Parcells announced that Romo would be the Cowboys starting quarterback for the October 29 game against the Carolina Panthers on NBC Sunday Night Football, in Week 8 of the 2006 season. Romo led the Cowboys to victory in his first game as a starter, 35-14. In that game, Romo was Sunday Night Football's "Rock Star of the Game."

On November 19, 2006 Romo led the Cowboys past the Indianapolis Colts, the NFL's last unbeaten team. Romo completed 19 of 23 passes as the Cowboys topped the Colts 21-14. Four days later, Romo helped the Cowboys win in a Thanksgiving Day NFL game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers by the score of 38-10. Romo went 22-29 with 306 yards and five touchdown passes without an interception, becoming the highest rated quarterback in the league. He tied a franchise record for touchdown passes in a game set by several others, most recently Troy Aikman. For his performance, he was awarded FOX's Galloping Gobbler award as the Thanksgiving Day MVP.

Romo aided the Cowboys in clinching a playoff berth, the second since Bill Parcells became coach in 2003. He concluded the 2006 regular season with 220 completions on 337 pass attempts for 2,903 yards, 19 touchdowns, and 13 interceptions, with a passer rating of 95.1.

On January 6th 2007, the Dallas Cowboys traveled to Qwest Field to play the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC wild card playoff round. With the Cowboys down 21-20 and 1:19 left on the clock, Dallas attempted a 19-yard field goal. Romo botched the hold for the kicker by dropping the snap as he attempted to set it down. Romo then tried to run into the end zone for an impromptu touchdown, but was tackled at the one yard line by Seattle defensive back Jordan Babineaux, and then fumbled the ball. Seattle took over on their own one yard line. It is unusual for a starting quarterback to be the team's holder. The role usually goes to the backup quarterback or the punter. Romo had the job because he had begun the season as the backup quarterback. Romo finished the 2006 season ranked seventh in the NFC in passing yards (2,903) and touchdown passes (19).

Romo played in the 2007 Pro Bowl after Drew Brees went down with an elbow injury and Marc Bulger was taken out. Romo threw one touchdown and one interception. Romo was the NFC's holder in the game.


2007 season
Romo began the 2007 season with four touchdown passes and an additional touchdown rush, defeating the New York Giants 45-35 in the Cowboys' first game of the regular season, His 345 passing yards in Week 1 led the NFL. In Week 2 Romo threw for 186 yards and 2 touchdowns beating the Dolphins in Miami, ranking him 7th in passing yards and tied for 2nd with 6 touchdown passes.[2] Romo added 329 passing yards and 2 touchdown passes in the Cowboys Week 3 34-10 win in Chicago. The following week, he passed for 339 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 35-7 win over the St. Louis Rams. He also ran for an additional touchdown. This brings his season totals to 1199 passing yards with 11 passing touchdowns and 2 rushing touchdowns. In week 5 of the season on Monday Night Football against the Buffalo Bills, Tony Romo threw 5 interceptions (4 in the first half, 2 of which were returned for touchdowns), and lost a fumble. He is the second person in the history of Monday Night Football to throw 5 interceptions in a winning effort. The first person was his QB coach Wade Wilson. Nonetheless, through his first 11 games of the season Tony Romo has thrown for 3043 yards with 29 touchdown passes, second only to Tom Brady,with a 105.3 passer rating and with only 13 interceptions despite the Buffalo game. In the six games since the Buffalo game Romo has thrown 5 interceptions to 16 touchdowns.

On October 29, Romo reached an agreement to a six-year, $67.5 million contract extension with the Cowboys. [3] The extension will bring Romo to eleven total seasons as a Dallas Cowboy.

On Thanksgiving Day (November 22), Romo threw two touchdowns bringing his season total to 29 with five games left in the regular season. This tied Danny White's record of 29 touchdowns in a season for a Cowboys quarterback.


Records and Honors
~2006 Pro Bowl Quarterback after starting only 10 games.

~Most 300 yard games for a Dallas Cowboy's quarterback in a season with 5 during 2007, Romo already has 8 in his career.

~Tied with Danny White for the most touchdowns in a season by a Dallas Cowboy's quarterback with 29 with 5 games left in the 2007 regular season.

~Tied for most touchdowns thrown in a game by a Dallas Cowboy's quarterback with 5 on Thanksgiving day 2006. He did this without throwing an interception.


Personal life
Romo is an avid amateur golfer, and attempted to qualify for the 2004 EDS Byron Nelson Championship and the 2005 U.S. Open, but missed the cut. During the offseason, when not training, he is known to play golf around Dallas.

He was the runner-up in 1998 to Caron Butler of the Washington Wizards for the Wisconsin Mr. Basketball award in high school.

Romo is also a frequent guest on local sports radio programs. Beginning in 2006, he has been the co-host of "Inside The Huddle", a one-hour player commentary show that aired on ESPN Radio on KESN-FM in Dallas along with linebacker Bradie James and has just signed on for his second season as the show's co-host which will also be joined regularly by Cowboys wide receiver Sam Hurd and broadcast on Live 105.3FM radio in Dallas and regionally on FSN Southwest Television.

He is beloved by his alma mater, Eastern Illinois University, where he was also a member of Sigma Pi fraternity. The university has had few professional athletes in its history. Mike Shanahan, coach of the Denver Broncos, also played quarterback for Eastern Illinois University. In addition to Shanahan, NFL coaches Sean Payton and Brad Childress have played for the university.

Romo had been socially associating with country music singer Carrie Underwood. They no longer date, but are still friends. [4] He was seen recently with actress Sophia Bush. [5] He has now been romantically involved with Jessica Simpson [1]

Romo is a third-generation Mexican American on his father's side. His grandfather, Ramiro Romo Sr., emigrated from Múzquiz, Coahuila, Mexico to San Antonio, Texas as an adolescent. The elder Romo cites Tony's success as an example of the possibilities afforded to immigrants in the United States: "I've always said this is a country of opportunities. If you don't get a job or an education, it's because you don't want to."[6] Romo's mother is of Polish-German descent.[7]

In September 2007, Romo's father was diagnosed with prostate cancer. The younger Romo has stated, though while upset about the family crisis, he still must continue to focus on his career.[8]