Ryan DiVergilis (rydivergilis@ursinus.edu)
Now in at quarterback for the Bears: Jack … Pens-ka? Pah-zen-ska?
Everyone in the Bears’ grandstand was wondering who was in at quarterback
in the closing minutes of a 36-point loss to Susquehanna University on October 22nd, 2019. Freshman Jack Psenicska was the third quarterback on the depth chart, and came into the game after a string of quarterback injuries in the loss. Little did the Ursinus faithful know that this 6ft, 160-pound frail-framed kid from Spring- field would eventually become the school’s all-time leader in touchdown passes by the end of his Ursinus career.
Fast forward three years and Psenicska (pronounced “Pah-zen-ska”) is the now full-time starting senior quarterback and team leader for the Bears. And on the brisk Friday night of October 14th, 2022, Jack became the all-time leading touchdown passer in Ursinus football history. He threw three touchdown passes to eclipse the record of his predecessor, Thomas Garlick (’19) – 45 for Garlick, 46 for Psenicska. Jack spoke about what this record means to him.
“It would mean a lot to me just knowing the players that came here before and how good they were,” said Psenicska. The Bears quarterback was on the team when Garlick was on the field, and believes he learned a great deal from Garlick’s leader- ship style. “The biggest thing is leadership. He was not about the stats himself, but more the team winning. Also, knowing and learning the playbook. I learned a lot of that from him,” said Psenicska.
Throwing touchdown passes does not just happen when Psenicska steps on the field on gameday. It starts with the film room and the practice field. Head Coach and quarterbacks coach Pete Gallagher shared his thoughts on Jack breaking the record. “It’s been neat coaching the quar- terbacks and developing these players and it’s been great to see them achieve,” said Gallagher. In his 22nd season at Ursinus, Gallagher has coached many to great feats, but Psenicska breaking the passing touchdown record is one of the most impressive. He spoke on the significance of this achievement. “The more touchdowns you score, the better you are going to be. It has been neat coaching the quarterbacks and developing these players and it has been great to see them achieve.”
Psenicska has four more regular season games left to add to this record-breaking feat and a potential sixth if Ursinus reaches a bowl game. It is clear now that Bears fans will be chanting for (Pah-zen-ska) for a long time to come.
Additionally, at last week’s Homecoming Game on October 22nd, Psenicska was named the Kenneth R. Walker Trophy Award Winner! The Walker Trophy is given to the most outstanding Ursinus player in the Homecoming game.