Sports

Cedar Grove Senior Earns Scholar-Athlete Award From U.S. Marines

J.P. Garcia is a standout football player, student at Bergen Catholic.

Bergen Catholic senior captain J.P. Garcia ’14 was the recipient of the 2013 Great American Rivalry Series Scholar-Athlete Award presented by the U.S. Marines in honor of his commitment to excellence in the classroom and on the football field. 

Garcia, of Cedar Grove, ranks in the top ten of his class at BC, and completed a three-year career on the Crusader varsity football team.

He led Bergen Catholic in total tackles in the 2013 season with (86) from his strong safety position. In addition to his prowess on defense, Garcia also finished as the team’s second leading rusher with (195 yards and a TD) and the second leading receiver with (219 yards). 

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Garcia proved yet again to be BC’s most valuable member on special teams, as he averaged a team-high (26.3 yards a return on kickoffs), and finished with the seventh highest career kickoff return average in school history (22.8 yards/return).

Garcia concluded his Bergen Catholic career with 142 tackles, 7 tackles for a loss, 4 interceptions, 2 forced fumbles, 2 recovered fumbles, and 1 sack. He finished with 1,005 all-purpose yards on offense and special teams.

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In the classroom, Garcia is a member of the National Honor Society, as well as honor societies representing the Spanish, Math, and Social Studies departments at Bergen Catholic. He has earned a career 4.0 GPA in honors and AP courses. 


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