Gabriela Howell
gahowell@ursinus.edu
Senior quarterback, four-year starter, two-year captain, and multiple record-breaker Tom Garlick kicked off his fourth and final season leading the Bears in their home opener versus Bethany College this Saturday, September 7th. The Bears won 22-10.
Garlick has made an unforgettable impact on the Ursinus College Football team and will leave quite a legacy behind. Garlick’s success began his freshman year. During his rookie campaign, he threw 1,522 passing yards and recorded 8 touchdowns. Additionally, he rushed for 285 yards and 3 touchdowns.
As he reflects back to his freshman year, Garlick admits “the thing I’m looking forward to the most going into [senior] year would have to be seeing how far we have come as a team since I was a freshman. That year we went 2-8, so to now be coming off a season where we played in a bowl game, it really excites me to see what we can do this year.”
That was just the beginning of Garlick’s impressive career at Ursinus. As a sophomore, Garlick led the Bears to a 5-0 winning streak to open up the season. During this run, he helped take down Centennial Conference powerhouse and #13 nationally ranked (2017) Johns Hopkins. The team finished with a final score of 21-17, with Garlick scoring the game-winning touchdown rush to solidify the Bears’ win.
Garlick finished out his sophomore season with 1,905 passing yards and 9 touchdowns. He also rushed for 469 yards and 6 touchdowns.
As a junior captain, Garlick truly embraced his leadership role. Garlick lead the Bears to kick off their 2018 season with a four-game winning streak, rushing for 299 yards and 6 touchdowns throughout the season. Garlick also broke the CC record for yards in a half (341), became the all-time UC leader in passing yards (5,716), and all-time UC leader in completions (487).
Also in his junior season, the QB finished with 2,772 yards which are the most in a single season in program history. Garlick received All-Centennial Honorable Mention 2018.
Despite all the broken records, Garlick’s main goal is selfless: he strives to be the best teammate he can be. “I’ve never been big on setting goals that include records or individual success. The game of football is 100% about the team and 11 guys working together, so the goals I have are to be the best teammate, and to do my role as the quarterback to the best of my ability.” Garlick truly exemplifies what being on a team is all about as he selflessly embraces his role on the team.
The Bears’ goal this season is to win the CC Championship. “It’s something [we] have wanted to do since freshman year and I think this season we have a really good chance of making a run,” Garlick said. “There are definitely a few games on the schedule that pop out like Muhlenberg, Hopkins, F&M, but in reality, this is a really good conference and every game you have to play a full four quarters [to win.]”