BELLE GLADE – These past seven days could not have gone much better for Jose Garcia.
The Glades Central senior kicker and punter has notched some accomplishments under his belt, which include his first college offer to Florida Memorial and a hard-earned nomination for the Lou Groza Placekicker of the Year.
In addition, Garcia (No. 2-ranked specialist; No. 42 overall player in Palm Beach County) helped Glades Central (5-0) earn a 16-13 home win over defending Class 4A state champion Booker T. Washington in the 6A-1A Gold Tri-County South Florida playoffs on Friday, Dec. 4.
For starters, the Florida Memorial offer came on Wednesday, Dec. 9.
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Garcia spoke on his college breakthrough moment.
“It feels great to receive my first offer from Florida Memorial,” Garcia said. “It gives you a sense of satisfaction. But at the end of the day, I still got to keep grinding and preparing myself to receive more offers, like my coach [Rashad Jackson] said.”
Garcia’s nomination for the Lou Groza Placekicker of the Year was announced later that evening (Dec. 9) by ESPN West Palm. He was one of four nominees, which also includes fellow senior kickers Chance Gagnon (Dwyer), Dylan Liska (Jupiter), and Carson Wilt (Atlantic).
“This means a lot for me and my family,” Garcia said. “I really hope I do win the Lou Groza award. It would be amazing.”
Garcia had more to say about his nomination.
“Everything started off in the offseason,” Garcia said. “I just wanted to be the best kicker that I could be for my team. I worked out two times a day with my dad and Coach Jackson. I really appreciate Coach Jackson for being one of the most powerful influencers for me. He guided me to the right path and showed me immense love to work out every day and get stronger.”
Garcia connected on a 39-yard field goal in his team’s three-point win over Booker T. Washington. He is now 3-for-3 on his field goal attempts this season.
“I’m having the most consistent year in my high school career,” Garcia said. “Now that I look back, I just really think about how my mentality changed. Everything is going on a great path for me.”
Garcia reflected on Glades Central’s playoff win over Booker T. Washington.
“It felt great beating the defending state champs,” Garcia said. “We knew that it was going to be a ball game from the jump and very competitive. It just feels amazing to look at the scoreboard and see that we won the ball game. To add on, Booker T is a Glades Central rival, so it feels great.”
Glades Central has another game tonight (Dec. 11; 7 p.m. kickoff) on the road against Dillard (4-0). Garcia’s Raiders are a 14-point underdog to the Panthers in the 6A-1A Gold semifinals of the Tri-County South Florida playoffs.
“We got to be disciplined and fast from the jump so we can set the tone early in the game,” Garcia said. “After that, we just got to dominate them and make them force turnovers so that the ball game will come in our favor. We just have to play Raider football and keep a chip on our no shoulders.”
PHOTO CREDITS: Florida Memorial University Football
