Brandon Michael Kirsch (born October 13, 1983) is a former
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
quarterback
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
. He played
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
at
Purdue University
Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...
, where he would forgo his senior season to enter the
2006 NFL Draft. Kirsh played for the
Colorado Crush
The Colorado Crush were an arena football team based in Denver, Colorado. They began play as a 2003 Arena Football League expansion team. The Crush played in the Central Division of the American Conference until the Arena Football League suspen ...
and
Philadelphia Soul
Philadelphia soul, sometimes called Philly soul, the Philadelphia sound, Phillysound, or The Sound of Philadelphia TSOP, is a genre of late 1960sā1970s soul music characterized by funk influences and lush instrumental arrangements, often feat ...
of the
Arena Football League
The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...
(AFL).
Early life
Kirsch, attended
Cedar Crest High School in
Lebanon, Pennsylvania
Lebanon () is a city in and the county seat of Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 26,814 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Lebanon is located in the central part of the Lebanon Valley, east of Harrisbu ...
, where he was first team all-state, first team all-county and league Most Valuable Player as senior after completing 115 of 198 passes (58.0 percent) for 1,950 yards and 26 touchdowns. He also rushed for 515 yards on 88 carries (5.9 average) and two touchdowns. Brandon was named second team all-county both his sophomore and junior seasons and was honorable mention all-state as junior. He completed 104 of 186 passes (55.9 percent) for 1,595 yards and 20 touchdowns as junior and 78 of 162 passes (48.1 percent) for 1,178 yards and 14 touchdowns as sophomore. Career totals were 300 of 552 passing (54.3 percent) for 4,808 yards and 61 touchdowns with 241 rushes for 1,142 yards (4.7 average) and 10 touchdowns. His high school football coach was Gene Fuhrman. He also played baseball and basketball. On September 24, 2001, he signed a letter of intent to play quarterback at
Purdue University
Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...
. He was ranked a 4-star prospect according to
Rivals.com
Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel.
History
Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...
.
College career
Kirsch started four games in 2002 as a true freshman, completing 59.0 percent of his passes for 1,067 yards with 8 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. He was also third on the team in rushing with 423 yards. Kirsch appeared in only three games his sophomore season (all as a reserve) before injuring his throwing shoulder and taking a medical
redshirt
Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to:
Entertainment
* ''Red Shirts'' (film), a 1952 film about Anita Garibaldi by Franco Rossi
* Redshirt (stock character), originally derived from ''Star Trek'', a stock character who dies soon after ...
. He returned in 2005 and started six games, throwing for 1,625 yards with 7 touchdowns and 7 interceptions in those games, before being benched in favor of freshman
Curtis Painter
Curtis Jeffrey Painter (born June 24, 1985) is a former American football quarterback. He played college football for the Purdue Boilermakers and was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the sixth round of the 2009 NFL Draft.
High school caree ...
. Following the benching, Kirsch caused a controversy on the team and lost popularity among fans and teammates. Kirsch chose to not return to school for his senior season, declaring himself for the
2006 NFL Draft.
Statistics
Kirsch's career stats are as follows:
Professional career
Kirsch was rated the 21st quarterback in the
2006 NFL Draft by NFLDraftScout.com.
Colorado Crush
He was not drafted by the
NFL and signed with the
Arena Football League
The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...
's
Colorado Crush
The Colorado Crush were an arena football team based in Denver, Colorado. They began play as a 2003 Arena Football League expansion team. The Crush played in the Central Division of the American Conference until the Arena Football League suspen ...
. Spent two seasons with the Crush, (2007ā08) where he played four total games, completing 12-of-21 passes for 179 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Philadelphia Soul
On May 20, 2011, the
Philadelphia Soul
Philadelphia soul, sometimes called Philly soul, the Philadelphia sound, Phillysound, or The Sound of Philadelphia TSOP, is a genre of late 1960sā1970s soul music characterized by funk influences and lush instrumental arrangements, often feat ...
signed Kirsch to fill in for
Justin Allgood, who was traded to the
Tulsa Talons
Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...
. On June 19, 2011, it was announced that he would start in place of the struggling
Ryan Vena
Ryan Vena (born November 15, 1977) is a former arena football quarterback. Vena attended Colgate University in Hamilton, New York and graduated in 2000. Vena started his career in arena football in 2002. He ended his career with over 720 caree ...
.
Reading Express
Kirsch signed with the
Reading Express
The Reading Express were a professional indoor football team based in Reading, Pennsylvania. They were most recently a member of the United Conference of the Indoor Football League (IFL). The Express began play in 2006, as an expansion team of ...
of the
Indoor Football League
The Indoor Football League (IFL) is a professional indoor American football league created in 2008 out of the merger between the Intense Football League and United Indoor Football. It has one of the largest number of currently active teams am ...
(IFL) for the 2012 season, but never played for the Express.
Statistics
''Stats from ArenaFan'':
References
External links
Purdue profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kirsch, Brandon
1983 births
Living people
American football quarterbacks
Colorado Crush players
Philadelphia Soul players
Purdue Boilermakers football players
People from Lebanon, Pennsylvania
Players of American football from Pennsylvania
Reading Express players