View source for Craig Krenzel

{{Short description|American football player (born 1981)}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2024}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name        = Craig Krenzel
| image       =
| alt         = 
| caption     = 
| number      = 6, 16
| position    = [[Quarterback]]
| birth_date  = {{birth date and age|1981|7|1}}
| birth_place = [[Sterling Heights, Michigan]], U.S.
| height_ft   = 6
| height_in   = 4
| weight_lbs  = 228
| high_school = [[Henry Ford II High School|Henry Ford II]] {{nowrap|(Sterling Heights)}}
| college     = [[Ohio State University|Ohio State]]
| draftyear   = 2004
| draftround  = 5
| draftpick   = 148
| pastteams   =
* [[Chicago Bears]] ([[2004 NFL season|2004]])
* [[Cincinnati Bengals]] ([[2005 NFL season|2005]])
| highlights  =
* [[BCS national champion]] ([[2003 Fiesta Bowl|2002]])
* [[William V. Campbell Trophy|Draddy Trophy]] (2003)
* Second-team [[List of All-Big Ten Conference football teams|All-Big Ten]] ([[2002 All-Big Ten Conference football team|2002]])
| statlabel1  = Pass attempts
| statvalue1  = 127
| statlabel2  = Pass completions
| statvalue2  = 59
| statlabel3  = Percentage
| statvalue3  = 46.5
| statlabel4  = [[Touchdown|TD]]–[[Interception|INT]]
| statvalue4  = 3–6
| statlabel5  = Passing yards
| statvalue5  = 718
| statlabel6  = [[Passer rating]]
| statvalue6  = 52.5
| pfr         = K/KrenCr00 
}}

'''Craig Krenzel''' (born July 1, 1981) is an American former professional [[American football|football]] player who was a [[quarterback]] in the [[National Football League]] (NFL).  He played [[college football]] for the [[Ohio State Buckeyes football|Ohio State Buckeyes]].  As the starting [[quarterback]], he led their [[2002 Ohio State Buckeyes football team|2002 team]] to a [[College football national championships in NCAA Division I FBS|national championship]].  He played professionally in the NFL for one season with the [[Chicago Bears]] in 2004.

==Early life==
Krenzel attended [[Henry Ford II High School]] ([[Sterling Heights, Michigan|Sterling Heights, Mich.]]), and was an excellent student and a letterman in football (3 yrs), basketball (2 yrs), and baseball (1 yr). In football, as a senior, Krenzel completed 60 percent of his passes and threw for 1,760 yards and 25 touchdowns, and won USA Today honorable mention All-America accolades that year.

==College career==
Krenzel played in college for The Ohio State Buckeyes. After quarterback [[Steve Bellisari]] was suspended from play due to an alcohol-related police charge late in the 2001 season, Krenzel earned the starting position against Michigan and led the Buckeyes to their first win in Ann Arbor since 1987.{{r|layden20030811}} His most successful year was 2002 when he led Ohio State to the [[BCS National Championship Game|national championship]]. Krenzel was 24–2 as a starter (while appearing in 27 games, appearing in relief of Scott McMullen in a loss to Illinois in 2001).

Krenzel graduated from [[The Ohio State University]]<!--Wikipedians do not use "The" as part of Ohio State's name; it is considered a marketing gimmick, and routinely deleted.--> with a degree in [[molecular genetics]] and a GPA of 3.75. He did research as part of a selective [[oncology]] laboratory at the [[Ohio State University Medical Center]].{{r|layden20030811}} Krenzel was named a First-team [[Academic All-American]] and Academic All-American of the Year, and received three Academic All-[[Big Ten]] awards, the [[Today's Top VIII Award]], a National Football Foundation Hall of Fame post-graduate scholarship, ''Sporting News''' Socrates Award, and the [[Draddy Trophy]].<ref name="ffkrenzel">{{cite web | url=http://www.footballfoundation.org/nff/biography/782/craig-krenzel | title=Craig Krenzel | access-date=March 21, 2011 | publisher=National Football Foundation | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111002180508/http://www.footballfoundation.org/nff/biography/782/craig-krenzel | archive-date=October 2, 2011 }}</ref>

Krenzel's brother Brian was also talented in both academics and athletics, playing for the [[Duke Blue Devils football]] team before graduating from the [[University of Louisville School of Medicine]].<ref name="layden20030811">{{cite news | url=http://cnnsi.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?expire=&title=Craig+Krenzel%2C+national+champion+quarterback+and+-+08.11.03+-+SI+Vault&urlID=409671987&action=cpt&partnerID=289881&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsportsillustrated.cnn.com%2Fvault%2Farticle%2Fmagazine%2FMAG1029307%2F2%2Findex.htm | title=A Beautiful Mind | access-date=March 21, 2011 | author=Layden, Tim | date=August 11, 2003 | publisher=Sports Illustrated | archive-date=March 12, 2012 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120312043357/http://cnnsi.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?expire=&title=Craig+Krenzel,+national+champion+quarterback+and+-+08.11.03+-+SI+Vault&urlID=409671987&action=cpt&partnerID=289881&fb=Y&url=http:%2F%2Fsportsillustrated.cnn.com%2Fvault%2Farticle%2Fmagazine%2FMAG1029307%2F2%2Findex.htm | url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Professional career==
{{NFL predraft
|    height ft = 6
|    height in = 3 1/2
|       weight = 228
|         dash = 4.85
|    ten split = 1.70
| twenty split = 2.83
|      shuttle = 4.08
|   cone drill = 7.22
|     vertical = 28.0
|     broad ft = 9
|     broad in = 4
|     arm span = 32 3/4
|    hand span = 9 1/8
|    wonderlic = 38<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://bleacherreport.com/articles/19719-nfl-draft-the-annual-drama-of-the-wonderlic-test |title=NFL Draft: The Annual Drama of the Wonderlic Test |website=BleacherReport.com |access-date=April 25, 2025}}</ref>
|         note = All values from [[NFL Combine]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://draftscout.com/dsprofile.php?PlayerId=1053&DraftYear=2004 |title=Craig Krenzel College Football Profile |website=DraftScout.com |access-date=April 25, 2025}}</ref>
}}

Krenzel was drafted in the fifth round of the [[2004 NFL draft]] (148th overall) by the [[Chicago Bears]], for whom he played the 2004 season.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/2004/draft.htm |title=2004 NFL Draft Listing |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en |access-date=2023-05-06}}</ref> Despite poor passing statistics, Krenzel won his first three starts at quarterback with the Bears, including a win over the [[San Francisco 49ers]], which was at the time starting [[Ken Dorsey]] at quarterback, the same quarterback that started for the [[Miami Hurricanes]] during the 2003 National Championship game. However, he lost his final two starts with the Bears and injured his ankle, ending his season.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Craig Krenzel 2004 Game Log |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/K/KrenCr00/gamelog/2004/ |access-date=2024-10-19 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> In 2005, he was cut by the Bears in the offseason and he signed with the [[Cincinnati Bengals]]. He was the third-string quarterback on the team behind [[Carson Palmer]] and [[Jon Kitna]]. He was released by the Bengals in May 2006 due to an elbow injury that he sustained that eventually required [[Tommy John surgery]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2006-05-15 |title=Bengals cut Krenzel from crowded QB depth chart |url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/news/story?id=2446054 |access-date=2024-10-19 |website=ESPN.com|agency=Associated Press |language=en}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Krenzel now works as a commentator on [[WBNS-FM|97.1 The Fan]] in [[Columbus, Ohio]]. Craig is known for his [[Joke|bit]] known as the "[[Mike Tomczak]] Story."

He is also a spokesman for JD Equipment and has acted in several commercial spots.

Krenzel now is a partner of the Arthur Krenzel Lett Insurance Group in Columbus, Ohio and Winfield, West Virginia. Craig Lett, his business partner, is the son of the Minor League pitcher [[Jim Lett]] of the [[Cincinnati Reds]].

Krenzel's son Brayden is a pitcher for the [[University of Tennessee]] Baseball Team.

==References==
<references/>

==External links==
* {{Official website|http://www.craigkrenzel.net}}

{{2002 Ohio State Buckeyes football navbox}}
{{Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback navbox}}
{{William V. Campbell Trophy}}
{{Football Academic All-America of the Year}}
{{Bears2004DraftPicks}}
{{Chicago Bears starting quarterback navbox}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Krenzel, Craig}}
[[Category:1981 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:American football quarterbacks]]
[[Category:Chicago Bears players]]
[[Category:Ohio State Buckeyes football players]]
[[Category:William V. Campbell Trophy winners]]
[[Category:People from Utica, Michigan]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Macomb County, Michigan]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Sterling Heights, Michigan]]