Former WR takes on a new chapter in life
Former Ohio State wide receiver Reggie Germany wanted to teach his kids the value of education.
Yes, he knows that Buckeyes fan of a certain age will roll their eyes hearing that.
“If you know my ... story,” he said, “you know I failed courses at Ohio State as I was getting ready to get prepared for the NFL.”
For some fans, the fact that Germany, before his brief stint with the Buffalo Bills, was banned from participating in the 2001 Outback Bowl with a 0.00 grade point average is all they remember.
“I’m not sure if anybody knows that I actually graduated,” Germany said.
He did so in 2015 and had very little time to celebrate the achievement as his wife Keah’s water broke during the ceremony. Germany rushed out after receiving his diploma and beat the rest of his family to the hospital. His son was born shortly after.
Showing up unexpectedly for Germany’s graduation is just one of the ways his three children have demonstrated how Germany’s lessons about school have resonated.
His eldest daughter, Jaelyn Johnson, 26, has multiple degrees from Ohio State.
“Her first degree was neuroscience,” Germany crowed. “Her second degree was data analysis and artificial intelligence, and her master’s was in data analytics and engineering.”
He admits her current work helping to make airplanes is “way beyond my paygrade.”
Germany may not be coding or constructing aircraft, but he has been successful in business, owning the rights to a handful of Crumbl Cookie stores, including one in Centerville and another set to open in Canal Winchester in the coming weeks.
His wife was the inspiration, partly because she taught family and consumer
sciences at Gahanna Lincoln.
“She would do, like, cooking classes, mass ordering,” Germany explained. “She would basically have the ovens and stuff in her classroom.”
So the couple was perfectly suited to sell baked goods. But why Crumbl Cookie? His wife enjoyed them so much, she had Germany make frequent trips to their Dublin store.
“For six months ... she called me her Doordash driver,” Germany said with a laugh. “I was basically driving through
the snow, braving the elements to make sure she had her weekly cookies . ... Start off before the birds chirp.”
It eventually just became easier to own a franchise than continue the morning jaunts.
But Germany still has to get up early because of all of his other endeavors. He trains local athletes, helps out Stanley Jackson’s football staff at Westerville North and has a committee of friends who occasionally gather together to consider what Germany’s next venture should be. Salons, car washes and apartment complexes have all been discussed.
It’s all in pursuit of his main goal, which he says is, “Leaving a legacy behind that the youngsters will be proud of.”
His younger children Raelee and Reggie are 7 and 9 years old, respectively, so parents in the Licking Heights school district better hope that Gemany doesn’t go back to school again. Can you imagine trying to follow the former NFL player who sells cookies on career day?