American former professional football player and sports broadcaster Cris Collinsworth has been happily married to his wife, Holly ‘Bankemper’ Collinsworth, for the last 35 years.
The couple met through their friends while attending the University of Cincinnati College of Law in 1988. Soon after, they started seeing each other and eventually married on June 3, 1989.
Once, during an interview with Cincinnati Enquirer (the link is no longer available), Cris said he was so lucky to ‘meet his wife.’ He also further gushed about the comfort that his better half brought into his life, saying,
She’s great. I have a really strong wife. It’s amazing all that she can handle, particularly with as much as I’m away from home
Via The Sun
Cris also revealed that he and his wife, Holly, settled in Kentucky near his in-laws’ residence after marriage. He said,
My wife is very happy here. Her parents are five minutes away. Her brother and sister are nearby. With me being away so much, it really does help that they’re around to help. And I like it here, too.
Via Heavy
While carrying her family forward in her native Kentucky, Holly started practicing her law degree and became a Cincinnati Bar Association member. But, her husband Chris fully diverted his career to sports despite earning a Juris degree in law in 1991, and that turned out great.
Over the years, Cris accomplished much as a sports reporter and broadcaster, winning the Sports Emmy Award 17 times. He has been part of renowned sports channels such as NBC, HBO, and Fox.
Despite such success, Cris didn’t let it get over his head. He always valued his family more than anything else because success, for him, was not only achieving a career milestone. According to his 2011 interview, a successful life for him is;
Am I married to the same woman that I married when I was 30 years old? Are my kids fairly normal and successful and have an opportunity to do good things in their lives? That’s kind of it,. I always really thought the best opportunity for the success of our family was to stay here with the community that helped raise them.
Over three decades have passed since their marriage, and they are leading their marital relationship gracefully.
Sports Broadcaster Cris Collinsworth Welcomed Four Children With His Wife, Holly
Cris and Holly are the parents of four children: two sons, Austin and Jac Collinsworth, and two daughters, Katie and Ashley. All of them are quite grown up now.
The Collinsworth couple gave birth to their eldest child, Katie, a year after they walked down the aisle. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Public Relations from the University of Florida and began her career as the Early Show Intern at CBS News.
For over six years, Katie worked for GolfNow, a division of Golf Channel, in various positions, such as Course Sales Associate, Sales Training Specialist, and Manager. According to her LinkedIn profile, she is currently the CEO of HouseHold.
Similarly, his oldest son, Austin, played football at Notre Dame. He earned his master’s in Finance in 2014 and is now vice president of Digital Distribution for the app Pro Football Focus.
Their youngest daughter, Ashley, graduated in Psychology from Harvard University. While at Harvard, she played track and field and had a pretty good record, for which her father, Cris, was so proud. In this regard, he once said,
I’ve told her repeatedly that she’s taken my gene pool to a whole new level—there’s nothing in her genetic makeup on my side that would point to Harvard University. There is nothing that anybody could do to make me any prouder of my daughter than what she’s accomplishing at Harvard.
But, when it came to pursuing her career, Ashley chose not to be a player. She began professionally as a sales coordinator at 21c Museum Hotels. She is currently a director and content producer at Medality, formerly MRI Online.
Lastly, Chris and Holly’s youngest, Jacm, is a sports commentator like his father. His professional journey began with ESPN in 2017, and now he is affiliated with NBC Sports.
In Case You Didn’t Know
- Cris Collinsworth was born to his parents, Abraham Lincoln “Abe” and Donetta Browning, on January 27, 1959, in Dayton, Ohio. He is currently 65 years old.
- He began his professional playing career with the Cincinnati Bengals in 1981.
- Cris soon retired as a player and switched to broadcasting, joining a sports radio talk show host on Cincinnati station WLW.
