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Thursday, November 22, 2001

By Mike White, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

SCHOOL: Central Catholic.

WHO IS HE? A 6-foot-2, 185-pound senior receiver who has helped Central Catholic to the WPIAL Class AAAA championship football game.

LAST WEEK: Garcia caught eight passes for 118 yards in a 38-14 victory over North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class AAAA semifinals.

SEASON: He has developed into one of the WPIAL's best receivers and is Central Catholic's top receiver with 51 catches for 738 yards.

CAREER: Garcia started a few games as a sophomore and was a full-time starter the past two seasons.

NEW AND IMPROVED: Garcia has caught 22 more passes than he did last season and feels like a much better player.

"Before my junior year, I didn't go to much of the summer workouts," he said. "This past summer, I went to everything. I did all the weightlifting and all the workouts. I even lost 10 pounds from a year ago. I feel a lot faster this year."

LATE START: Although he always wanted to play football, Garcia, who lives in Ingram, never put on a uniform until his freshman year at Central Catholic. "My dad wouldn't let me play," Garcia said. "He's a physical therapist and he said he saw way too many injuries to let me play at such a young age. Maybe he figured by the time I got to high school, I wouldn't want to play any more. But I did."

Garcia was part of a ninth-grade team that went 5-1 three years ago.

"It really only takes one year to get you into football," he said. "My freshman year, I kind of had a tough time, but I still liked it."

BASKET CASE: Garcia also is a starting guard on Central Catholic's basketball team. The Vikings were one of the best teams in WPIAL Class AAAA last season. He also played in the Keystone Games this past summer and helped the team win the bronze medal.

"I've always liked basketball," Garcia said. "I probably still like basketball better than football. But I don't like to tell my football coaches that too often."

THE FUTURE: Garcia is being recruited by Villanova as well as Cornell and Yale of the Ivy League. They all want him for football.

"[Central Catholic basketball coach] Chuck Crummie has been trying to talk Yale into football and basketball," Garcia said. "But I think my chances with Yale are better in football."