Antonio Cromartie

He ran a career-best time of 46.39 seconds in the 400 meters at the NCAA Division I Championships, placing 6th in the prelims.

He was timed at 21.27 seconds in the 200 meters.

Antonio Cromartie (born April 15, 1984) is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL).

In a game against the Oakland Raiders, Cromartie returned a kickoff 91 yards, the longest return for the team since 2001.

Cromartie wore jersey No. 25 his rookie season but switched to No. 31 as a Charger for subsequent years, the reverse of #13, the jersey he wore at Florida State.

This was enough to earn Cromartie 2002 USA Today defensive player of the year.

Considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Cromartie ranked sixth among cornerback prospects in the nation.

Cromartie also participated in the 2003 U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

Cromartie decided to stay close to home for college and accepted an athletic scholarship offer from Florida State University, where he played for coach Bobby Bowden's Florida State Seminoles football team from 2003 to 2004.

In addition to football, Cromartie also joined the Florida State Seminoles track team in 2004.

He was a member of the FSU track team that won the ACC Championship in 2004, where he placed 10th in the 200 meters with a time of 21.35 seconds.

After flashing playmaking potential as a nickelback and kick returner his first two years, Cromartie tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in July 2005 during voluntary workouts before his junior year and was forced to miss the entire 2005 season.

He was potentially going to play at wide receiver during his junior year.

He played college football for the Florida State Seminoles and was selected in the first round by the San Diego Chargers in the 2006 NFL Draft.

Despite being removed from competitive football for an entire year, Cromartie was still selected as the 19th overall pick of the first round of the 2006 NFL Draft by the Chargers based on his great potential.

After not performing much at the NFL Scouting Combine, on March 16, 2006, just 8 months after surgery to repair his torn ACL, Cromartie performed at his pro day in 2006 for scouts.

On July 25, 2006, Cromartie signed a 5-year, $13.5 million contract with $7.35 million guaranteed with the Chargers.

In his first season with the Chargers, Cromartie saw action at cornerback and on special teams.

Toward the end of the season, Cromartie handled some punt and kickoff return duties.

He was selected to four Pro Bowls and was a first-team All-Pro in 2007 after leading the league in interceptions.

He also played for the Arizona Cardinals, New York Jets and Indianapolis Colts.

Cromartie holds the record for the longest scoring play in NFL history after returning a missed field goal 109 yards for a touchdown in 2007.

After his playing career, he was a graduate assistant for the Texas A&M Aggies.

Cromartie was born in Tallahassee, Florida, He was a versatile player at Tallahassee's Lincoln High School.

Throughout his senior season, Cromartie recorded 12 tackles and 2 interceptions, returned 3 punts and 2 kicks for TDs, had 450 yards and 1 touchdown on 30 catches and ran the ball 13 times for 242 yards and 3 touchdowns.

On October 28, 2007, Cromartie had two interceptions, returning one 70 yards for a touchdown, and a fumble recovery for another touchdown while leading the Chargers to a 35–10 victory against the Houston Texans.

He was subsequently nominated for the AFC Defensive Player of the Week award.

The following week, Cromartie made NFL history.

Minnesota Vikings kicker Ryan Longwell came onto the field to attempt a 58-yard field goal to end the first half.

The Chargers put Cromartie in the endzone to return the field goal in case of a missed kick.

The field goal attempt missed the goalposts and fell toward the back of the endzone.

Cromartie intercepted the football, came down with both feet in bounds, two inches from the back of the end zone, and began the return.

Cromartie returned the missed field goal 109 yards for a touchdown at The Metrodome, setting a record for the longest play in NFL history.

This record can be equaled but never exceeded (barring a rule change); a regulation football field is 100 yards long, the end zones are 10 yards deep, a play ends when the ball crosses the goal line, and all plays are rounded down to the nearest yard.

Therefore, according to the current rules of the game, 109 is the theoretical maximum for plays in the NFL.

The next week Cromartie made his first NFL start in place of the injured Quentin Jammer and intercepted three passes thrown by Peyton Manning of the Indianapolis Colts; the last of which was a leaping one-handed interception in front of Colts WR Reggie Wayne.

Cromartie called the interception the best play of his short career.

He is the first player to intercept Peyton Manning three times in one game during the regular season, and earned Defensive Player of the Week honors for his performance in the game.

Cromartie also ran track in high school and placed 3rd in the 110-metres hurdles and as a member of the 4 x 100-metres relay team at the Class 5A County track meet.

He also cleared 14.3 meters in triple jump.