As a quarterback for the Ohio State Buckeyes during the national championship season of 2003, quarterback Craig Krenzel has experienced his share of staring down 330-plus pound raging men trying to savagely pound him into the turf.
But when Krenzel shared the story of his journey, from high school superstar to national champion and finally NFL quarterback, with the men in attendance at Lighthouse Christian Fellowship's Honor Bound Men's Summit this past weekend, it was apparent that those blindside rushes and pressure-packed moments were nothing compared to committing his life to Christ.
"All through high school and almost all the way through college, I never took the time to understand what Christ's death truly meant," said Krenzel, as he addressed the men.
"I always knew I was a good person, and I thought that was enough."
But he soon found out that wasn't the case.
To many, being part of a national championship team and drafted into the NFL - starting after only a handful of games into your career - might be a dream come true.
However, Krenzel experienced just the opposite.
He said his time spent with the Chicago Bears was the worst time of his life. "It was miserable," said Krenzel. "We were terrible. I was terrible. That fall my wife and I decided we had to figure out what we needed to do in order to get our lives together."
Then came the break Krenzel needed.
"I got fired," he said with a laugh. "Twenty-four years old, a wife, two car payments and a house payment, and I've got no job. But God is not without a plan. It was the best thing that could have ever happened to me."
Krenzel was signed by Cincinnati as a free agent in the 2005 season, and it was there that he met a caring core of players who were incredibly devoted to serving God.
Bengals quarterback Jon Kitna became a central figure in Krenzel's life - a mentor, so to speak.
It was then that he made tremendous strides, not as an NFL quarterback, but as a man of God.
"If I could pick someone for my 2-year-old son to be like, it would be Jon Kitna," said Krenzel.
"The growth I made spiritually at that time was the most important time of my life.
Football?
"Football became secondary to me. I realized it was the people I met, and the relationships I forged that were what was truly important. And my ultimate goal is my relationship with Jesus Christ."
Not that Krenzel doesn't look back at his career with great admiration.
The game did bring him one of the greatest achievements one can attain in life.
"Because of football, I can stand here and tell you all that I am a child of God," said Krenzel. "And I'm working on becoming a man of God."
Krenzel said that once he found the key to his faith, and how he should live in order to truly be blessed and happy, it all began to fall into place.
"From what perspective are you looking at things?" asked Krenzel.
There are two things that make a man.
"One is the ability to enter and sustain relationships. It makes you a better husband, father, son and friend.
"We can't be afraid to share our lives and our hearts with each other. When we start sharing, we start to see each other in a different light."
"Secondly, you have to have a purpose greater than your own individual needs and desires.
"You have to live a life for Christ, and deliver a message of hope that will rub off on others. What can we do to impact other people in a positive spiritual way?" Krenzel said that in the end, it isn't the cars, the money, or any other material things that men value in life which make a man, but rather the impact you have on other's lives.
That seems to be an amazing comment, coming from a man who lived in a world where testosterone-driven men bent on destruction - who often live lifestyles of the rich and famous - ruled the turf.
He said that sadly, even those guys bench-pressing their own weight and performing feats of greatness on the gridiron on Sundays are just like every other man out there today.
"We all want to be accepted and loved, and to have someone tell us everything is going to be OK," said Krenzel.
"What a great opportunity we have as men of faith to share that message of hope with others."
As for Krenzel's life after football, he isn't sure what he wants to do.
Despite the fame and fortune, he is, just like many other men, seeking where he fits into this great big world.
"I don't know where I'm at in life right now," said Krenzel. "I'm seeking God's will. I am considering the ministry, but I'm open to what He has in store for me."
Aside from the championship win over Miami in 2003, people often assume Krenzel's favorite memory stems from the Purdue game, in which he kept the Buckeye's championship hopes alive with a Hail Mary with time running out to Michael Jenkins on fourth down (Krenzel said he stunk in that game all the way up until that point, so it's not a treat of a memory).
He said that his favorite moment was following his final game at the Horseshoe, in a win over Michigan in 2004.
Following their post-game rituals, Krenzel strode out onto an empty Buckeye field, and took a seat near the field and took in the sight of the place where he had invested so much time, sweat and tears over his four-year career.
Pretty soon, other seniors wandered over, sat down and gazed into the twilight night sky which was illuminated by the lights of the stadium, taking in one long last gulp of what it means to be a Buckeye.
"Nobody said a word for about five minutes," said Krenzel. "There was nothing left to say. One by one we got up and left in silence. It was the neatest experience of my football career."
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