Tony Romo played college football at Eastern Illinois University, where he made an Ohio Valley Conference championship appearance in 2001 and won the Walter Payton Award the following year.
107 Facts About Tony Romo
2.
Tony Romo signed with the Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2003.
3.
Tony Romo led the Cowboys to four postseason appearances during his tenure, while receiving Pro Bowl honors amid each playoff run.
4.
Tony Romo retired after the 2016 season when a preseason back injury caused him to lose his starting position to backup Dak Prescott.
5.
Tony Romo holds several Cowboys team records, including passing touchdowns, passing yards, most games with at least 300 passing yards, and games with three or more touchdown passes.
6.
Tony Romo held a higher passer rating in the fourth quarter than any other NFL quarterback from 2006 to 2013.
7.
However, Tony Romo's reputation was affected by a lack of postseason success, having won only two of the six playoff games he appeared in and never advancing beyond the divisional round.
8.
Tony Romo was born in San Diego, California to Ramiro Tony Romo Jr.
9.
Tony Romo is a "Navy brat," as he was born while his father was stationed at the San Diego US Naval Base.
10.
Tony Romo played baseball as a child and was selected to the Little League All-Star team.
11.
Tony Romo started as quarterback for the Burlington High School Demons beginning as a junior.
12.
Tony Romo was a starter on the Burlington High School varsity basketball team and played golf and tennis.
13.
Tony Romo graduated from Burlington High School in 1998, with his 1,080 points being the all-time scoring record for the Burlington basketball varsity.
14.
Tony Romo attended Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois, where he played for the NCAA Division I-AA Eastern Illinois Panthers football team and was a member of Sigma Pi.
15.
On December 19,2002, Tony Romo became the first player in Eastern Illinois and Ohio Valley Conference history to win the Walter Payton Award, given annually to the top Division I-AA football player.
16.
Tony Romo finished his career holding school and conference records with 85 touchdown passes.
17.
Tony Romo finished second in school and third in conference history with 8,212 passing yards and second in school history with 584 completions and 941 attempts.
18.
Tony Romo threw for 34 touchdowns and scored one rushing touchdown.
19.
Tony Romo is the first Eastern Illinois player to have his number retired.
20.
On December 7,2021, Tony Romo was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame as a member of the 2021 class.
21.
Tony Romo did not initially receive an invitation to attend the 2003 NFL Combine, but received a late invitation to attend as an extra quarterback to throw passes to other prospects during drills.
22.
Tony Romo entered the 2003 training camp third on the Cowboys' depth chart behind Quincy Carter and Chad Hutchinson.
23.
Tony Romo faced being cut from the roster until Carter was released following allegations of substance abuse.
24.
Tony Romo began the season as a backup to starter Drew Bledsoe.
25.
Tony Romo's first NFL pass was a 33-yard completion to wide receiver Sam Hurd.
26.
Tony Romo's only other pass of the game was a two-yard touchdown pass, his first in the NFL, to wide receiver Terrell Owens.
27.
One week later, Tony Romo replaced Bledsoe for the start of the second half of a game against the New York Giants.
28.
Tony Romo finished with 227 yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions.
29.
Tony Romo aided the Cowboys in clinching a playoff spot, their second since Parcells became coach in 2003.
30.
Tony Romo 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.
31.
Tony Romo recovered the ball and attempted to run it in, but was tackled short of the first down marker, and turned the ball over on the Seattle 2-yard line.
32.
Tony Romo finished the 2006 season ranked seventh in the NFC in passing yards and touchdown passes.
33.
Tony Romo played in the 2007 Pro Bowl after Drew Brees went down with an elbow injury as a substitution for Marc Bulger.
34.
Tony Romo threw one touchdown and one interception, and was the NFC's kickoff holder in the game.
35.
In September 2007, Tony Romo's father was diagnosed with prostate cancer.
36.
Tony Romo stated that, while upset about the family crisis, he still had to continue to focus on his career.
37.
Tony Romo became the second person in the history of Monday Night Football to throw five interceptions in a winning effort.
38.
Tony Romo earned NFC Offensive Player of the Week for his game against the Packers.
39.
Tony Romo finished the 2007 season with 4,211 passing yards, 36 touchdowns, and 19 interceptions.
40.
Tony Romo completed 24 of his 32 passes for a total of 320 yards and one touchdown.
41.
Tony Romo completed 21 of his 30 passes for a total of 312 yards and three touchdowns.
42.
That same month, Tony Romo signed a 5-year, $10 million endorsement deal with apparel marketer Starter, but was not allowed to wear footwear on the field as the company did not have a contract with the NFL.
43.
Tony Romo committed three turnovers in the game and threw for 183 yards and no touchdowns.
44.
Tony Romo completed 16 of his 27 passes for a then-career-high 353 yards along with three touchdowns.
45.
Tony Romo completed 13 of 29 passes for 127 yards and one touchdown.
46.
Tony Romo threw three interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown for the Giants.
47.
In Week 15, Tony Romo led the Cowboys to a win against an undefeated team late in the season for the second time in his career.
48.
Tony Romo finished the 2009 season as the first quarterback in team history to take every snap for a full season.
49.
Tony Romo passed his own mark for single season passing yardage, with 4,483 yards, and became the first Cowboys quarterback to throw more than 20 touchdowns and fewer than ten interceptions in a season.
50.
Tony Romo's eight 300 yard games was a team record, surpassing his own record from 2007.
51.
Tony Romo was named to the Pro Bowl for the third time in his career.
52.
In Week 5 against the Tennessee Titans, Tony Romo threw for a career-high 406 yards and three touchdowns.
53.
Tony Romo threw for over 200 yards and three touchdowns but threw two costly interceptions.
54.
The injury occurred during the second quarter, when Tony Romo was driven to the turf by Giants linebacker Michael Boley.
55.
Tony Romo was placed on Injured Reserve on December 21,2010, and replaced by veteran Jon Kitna.
56.
Tony Romo was ranked 72nd by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2011.
57.
In Week 2 against the San Francisco 49ers, Tony Romo suffered a broken rib and a punctured lung on a hit from Carlos Rogers in the second quarter that forced him to miss part of the game.
58.
Tony Romo came back in the final seconds of the third quarter and played the fourth quarter throwing for a touchdown and driving down the field for the game-tying field goal with four seconds left in the game to force overtime.
59.
Tony Romo finished the game with 345 yards and two touchdowns with a 116.4 rating despite the cracked rib and punctured lung.
60.
Tony Romo played with a protective vest for a few games to protect his torso.
61.
In Week 10, Tony Romo posted the second highest quarterback rating of his career with a rating of 148.40 in Week 10 against the Buffalo Bills.
62.
In Week 16 against the Philadelphia Eagles, Tony Romo suffered a severely bruised hand when he smashed it against an opposing player's helmet.
63.
Tony Romo left the game after attempting just two passes with no completions.
64.
Tony Romo started the game despite the hand injury the previous week.
65.
Tony Romo accounted for 32 of the 39 total touchdowns the Cowboys scored in the 2011 NFL season.
66.
Tony Romo finished the 2012 season with 4,184 passing yards, 31 passing touchdowns, and ten interceptions.
67.
Tony Romo was ranked 91st by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2012.
68.
In Week 13 against the Philadelphia Eagles, Tony Romo threw three touchdown passes.
69.
Tony Romo went 25-for-43 for 268 yards, with one touchdown and one interception.
70.
Tony Romo surpassed 25,000 career passing yards in this game with 30-for-42 passing for 341 yards and two touchdowns.
71.
Tony Romo opened the season with a win over the New York Giants, passing for 263 yards and two touchdowns.
72.
Tony Romo briefly left the game with a rib injury, but returned after halftime and finished the game.
73.
Tony Romo underwent back surgery on December 27,2013, and was placed on the Cowboys' injured reserve list.
74.
Tony Romo finished the 2013 season with 3,828 passing yards, 31 passing touchdowns, and ten interceptions.
75.
Tony Romo was ranked 71st by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2014.
76.
In Week 8, against the Washington Redskins, Tony Romo went down with a back injury when linebacker Keenan Robinson sacked him, with his knee going into Tony Romo's back.
77.
Tony Romo set his personal best quarterback rating in a single game with 151.7.
78.
Tony Romo was 19-of-31 for 293 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions.
79.
Tony Romo was 15-of-19 for 191 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions.
80.
Tony Romo was involved in a controversial sequence in the fourth quarter of the game.
81.
Tony Romo completed a 31-yard pass to Dez Bryant on a fourth-and-2 play from the Packers' 32-yard line.
82.
Tony Romo led the NFL in completion percentage and passer rating en route to the NFC East title.
83.
Tony Romo was ranked 34th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2015.
84.
Tony Romo was the highest undrafted player on the year's list.
85.
Tony Romo started strong in the 2015 season, throwing a game-winning pass to Jason Witten with seven seconds left in the Cowboys' season opener against the New York Giants.
86.
Tony Romo continued to show success in a Week 2 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles, but suffered a broken left collarbone in the third quarter after being sacked by linebacker Jordan Hicks.
87.
Tony Romo returned to the starting lineup in a Week 11 game against the Miami Dolphins.
88.
Tony Romo was unable to start in the 2016 regular season after suffering a compression fracture to the L1 vertebra in his back during the Cowboys' third preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks.
89.
Amid Prescott guiding the team to an eight-game winning streak, Tony Romo conceded his role as starting quarterback to Prescott and began serving as the Cowboys' backup when he returned to the active roster in Week 11.
90.
Tony Romo made his season debut in the regular season finale on January 1,2017, against the Philadelphia Eagles.
91.
Tony Romo warmed up with the team and sat in full uniform on the bench, but did not play in the game and was not considered an official member of the roster.
92.
None of the ex-players and coaches in a lead position on other networks at the time of Tony Romo's hiring started their broadcasting career in the lead position.
93.
Tony Romo began to face increased criticism of his broadcasting ability during the 2021 NFL season.
94.
Tony Romo was criticized for talking too much, telling confusing stories and seeming to be confused during crucial parts of games.
95.
The New York Post reported that following the season, CBS staged an intervention believing that Tony Romo's analysis had begun to regress.
96.
Multiple CBS executives met with Tony Romo to discuss their concerns that he was not preparing adequately to call games and that his chemistry with Nantz had declined.
97.
Criticism of Tony Romo's broadcasting increased further during Tony Romo's sixth year as the lead play-by-play broadcaster for CBS.
98.
Tony Romo was said to be shouting at viewers, making odd vocalizations and talking too much during the broadcast.
99.
Some have speculated that Tony Romo being removed from the field for a number of years is responsible for the perceived decline in his broadcasting ability.
100.
In 2018, Tony Romo filled the vacancy of Jon Gruden in Corona's "Corona Hotline" commercials.
101.
Tony Romo has maintained his recurring position in the series of advertisements, and many of the television ad spots feature his fantasy football advice.
102.
In November 2007, Tony Romo began dating American singer and actress Jessica Simpson.
103.
On May 28,2011, Tony Romo married Candice Crawford, the 2008 Miss Missouri USA, a former journalist for Dallas television station KDAF, and the sister of actor Chace Crawford.
104.
Tony Romo is an avid amateur golfer, and attempted to qualify for the 2004 EDS Byron Nelson Championship and the 2005 US Open, but failed.
105.
Tony Romo failed to make the cut in qualifying for Byron Nelson in 2008.
106.
Tony Romo missed the cut with scores of 77 and 82, dead last in the 132-man field after the second round.
107.
Tiger Woods has described Tony Romo as being the best celebrity golfer he has played with.