Intentional grounding

New husband, father Romo plants roots in faith and family

By Jennifer Eisenbart

Staff writer

As a new daddy, Tony Romo’s most significant victory in the last few weeks wasn’t on the football field, but at home.

“We just got him sleeping through the night a little bit, so it’s exciting,” admitted Romo about his 2-1/2 month old son, Hawkins Crawford Romo.

It was another step forward in the evolution of Romo, who in the past six years has gone from backup quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys to starter and next great hope for “America’s Team” to husband and now father.

In fact, you could say all cylinders are finally clicking for Romo, on and off the field. The 32-year-old came back to Burlington – he graduated from Burlington High School in 1998 – for his annual football camp Monday, teaching middle schoolers and high schoolers in the morning and area youth in the afternoon.

Romo’s time at the camp has decreased over the years – from four days originally to just the one now – as demands on his time increased. But BHS coach Hans Block is grateful for any time the native can spare, and not just for his football skills.

“He’s a great person, not just because of his star power,” said Block, who added that 45 different coaches volunteer to work at the camp for free just to get to work with Romo.

“They do it because they want to be around Tony and want to give back to the kids.”

Giving back to young football players is a theme Romo himself echoes.

“For me to be able to teach some of these kids what I’ve learned and some of these coaches what I’ve learned, it’s great for them and it’s great for me,” he said. “It’s a good feeling to know you can help some kids out.”

One thing that Romo has always spoken about is the power of work ethic, and how it has propelled him forward. It also ties into what he hopes to teach youngsters.

“If every time it looked like I was done … if I had listened, I would have been done a long time ago,” Romo said. “You just have to have an inner drive.

“Every morning, you wake up with a choice,” he added. “The people who keep stacking those days together … you don’t know where you can be, one, two, five years from now.”

With that in mind, Romo is ready to tackle the 2012 NFL season. There is a sense among national media that the clock is ticking with the Cowboys, considering Romo and some of the other players on the roster – including DeMarcus Ware, whom Romo commented on and drew a laugh at the press conference that preceded the camp – aren’t getting any younger.

“I think we’ve seen over and over again how many of these guys can play later on,” he said. “I don’t care whether (DeMarcus Ware) is 52 or 21, he’s still going to be the best athlete on the field.”

As for himself, the sense of urgency he feels now comes every year.

“It’s about right now,” Romo said. “I think there’s a sense of urgency every year you play in the NFL.”

Romo is ready to face that urgency, whether or not critics are being vocal about his play. In fact, by now, he expects it.

“I think it all comes down to winning,” he said. “There’s criticism when you play in the NFL, especially when you play quarterback. If you can’t handle that or something, I think you’re just going to go away. You just have to have a sense of urgency. That’s why you work so hard.”

Of course, there is that other side of Romo these days – home life with his wife Candice and his son. Surprisingly, the two mix fairly well.

“Any time you can have a wife, someone who loves you and cares for you no matter what, it makes home kind of your soul,” Romo explained. “It allows you to know at the end of the day, you have your faith, your family, you’re going to be OK.”