Championships started in Waupaca
By Greg Seubert
Football championships are nothing new for Brock Jensen.
It started 10 years ago at Waupaca High School, where he quarterbacked the Comets to a 14-0 record and a WIAA Division 3 state championship as a senior.
That season led to a scholarship offer from North Dakota State, where he eventually helped lead the Bison to three consecutive Football Championship Subdivision national championships from 2011-13. His 48 career wins are more than any other quarterback in FCS history.
A 47-5 record as a starting quarterback led to stints with the NFL’s Miami Dolphins and the Canadian Football League’s Ottawa Redblacks, where Jensen wrapped up his professional career two years ago with a win over Calgary in the Grey Cup, the CFL’s version of the Super Bowl.
Jensen, now a financial adviser in the Twin Cities area, returned to Waupaca Aug. 31 for the Comets’ Bay Conference matchup with New London.
A video of Jensen’s high school and college highlights played on Comet Field’s scoreboard during halftime as Jensen watched with his family on the sideline.
“I was very fortunate and blessed to leave the game with no regrets,” he said. “For me, that was just huge. At the tail end of my career, it was kind of a culmination of a lot of different things. I didn’t see my career going in the right direction with my shoulder not really lasting and hanging in there for me.”
Jensen played his high school football at Haberkorn Field, the Comets’ home before Comet Field opened last year.
“The old school in me is saying Haberkorn all the way, but everybody’s moving to this nice, new turf nowadays,” he said.
Jensen signed with the Dolphins as an undrafted free agent in May 2014. The team released him in July of that year, but re-signed him in August 2014 before cutting him later that month.
Ottawa signed him in 2015 and he made his debut with the Redblacks July 22, 2016, by completing 20 of 29 passes for 271 yards and two touchdowns in a 30-29 loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
Jensen’s first start came later in the season, but an injury kept him from playing in the Redblacks’ 39-33 overtime win over Calgary in the 2016 Grey Cup.
That game turned out be Jensen’s farewell to football, as the Redblacks released him in June 2017 during training camp.
“I’ve been a starter, I’ve been a backup,” he said. “It’s all about giving your best and learning from experience. You never know when your number’s going to get called. You have to be ready at all times for whatever role you’re in. That’s something that carries over in life, too. I was able to hang it up and go out on top with a Grey Cup victory in Ottawa. It felt good to walk off the field a champion.”
Although Jensen’s time in the NFL was short, he said he enjoyed playing football in Canada.
“We sold out every single game in Ottawa and had a great crowd, great atmosphere every game day,” he said. “There’s a lot of passion up for football. It was a great time.”
Jensen’s playing days may have ended, but he hasn’t given up on football just yet.
“I want to get back into coaching someday,” he said. “Seeing what the coaching lifestyle is at the college and professional level, those guys don’t get a break. I lived it as a player and it’s almost the same as a coach. It’s not the most family-friendly business and job in the world.
“I just wanted to take a different route,” he added. “I didn’t see myself loving that career path. I see myself maybe coaching at some local high school someday around my neck of the woods in Minnesota and doing some assistant work here and there.”
He may live in Minnesota now, but Jensen said he’s still a big Green Bay Packers fan.
“My in-laws are big Vikings fans,” he said. “I’m outnumbered over there, but I’m holding strong.”
Jensen spent much of the game talking to some of his high school teammates and coaches.
“It’s just a great night to come back and see all these familiar faces,” he said. “This is always going to be home for me. I couldn’t be more grateful to be a Waupaca boy. I will be forever.”