Gardiner Leads Shamrocks Past Elgin Larkin

Sports Spotlight by John Montgomery

St. Patrick’s varsity football program has never won a state championship or a Prep Bowl. The Shamrocks qualified for the state playoff eight times under former coach Dan Galante. They have advanced to the quarterfinals only twice in school history.

Maybe that could change with the tandem of coach Tom Zbikowski and quarterback Gavin Gardiner.

Gardiner, a junior, was impressive on Saturday night at Triton College, completing 8 of 10 passes for 148 yards and two touchdowns to set a school single-game completion record in a 49-14 running-clock victory over Elgin Larkin.

“He’s going to be the best player in the state,” said Zbikowski after recording his first triumph as head coach.

“I believe in (Zbikowski) because he is a great leader,” Gardiner said. “He has taught me so many things. This is our first victory together. I am really excited for the future.”

Offensive coordinator and former St. Patrick quarterback Tom Barrett, who set school records by passing for 512 yards and six touchdowns in an epic 48-45 loss to Joliet Catholic in 2005, also echoed Zbikowski’s praise of Gardiner. “He is going to be a special quarterback,” Barrett said.

Zbikowski/Gardiner could be an unforgettable combination. The Bears certainly believe the football marriage between coach Ben Johnson and quarterback Caleb Williams will lead go success. Bill Belichick and Tom Brady won six Super Bowls. Sean Payton and Drew Brees won 161 games and a Super Bowl. And Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes have won 161 games and three Super Bowls and are still counting.

To say that St. Patrick was frustrated after losing its season opener at Yorkville 14-7 would be an understatement. Its offense failed to launch and score points. The Shamrocks amassed 310 yards while Gardiner passed for 210 in his varsity debut,but he was intercepted on the final play of the game.

Against Elgin Larkin, there were no problems with offensive execution. The Shamrocks scored seven touchdowns and didn’t have to punt the football.

“We were on point tonight,” Barrett said afterward.

Gardiner threw for two touchdowns and completed passes to five different receivers. The passing game set up the running attack, which accounted for five touchdowns. Jayden Miranda scored twice as St. Patrick ran for 150 yards on 17 attempts.

St. Patrick built a 28-0 lead in the first quarter. The Shamrocks opened with an impressive 75-yard drive as Gardiner completed three passes for 40 yards and Tim Schayer scored on a 17-yard run. Later, Gardiner threw a pass for a touchdown and Miranda scored on runs of 15 and 16 yards. Gardiner was 7-of-9 for 123 yards in the first half while the offensive line prevented him from being sacked and the defense intercepted three passes. Offensively, the Shamrocks finished with 312 yards.

Barrett continued to praise Gardiner’s performance. “He plays above his age. He works hard on his own. He makes my job calling plays easy,” Barrett said.

To prepare for the 2025 season, Gardiner spent his summer working on the passing game at Brooks Park.

“Our receivers are great,” he said. “They make it easy for me. They played awesome tonight.”

St. Patrick led 35-6 at halftime, then started the third quarter with a 25-yard touchdown pass from Gardiner to Schayer. Afterward, Zbikowski pulled his starters. The second unit, led by sophomore Kierre Wilson, drove 59 yards to account for the Shamrocks’ last touchdown, a six-yard run by Sean Bay, setting the stage for a running clock in the fourth quarter.

“Those kids work hard in practice and deserve to play,” Zbikowski said of his decision to give the reserves a considerable amount of playing time.

The schedule will get tougher as St. Patrick will face Chicago Catholic League rivals Leo, DePaul Prep, Brother Rice and Benet during the next four weeks.

Tom Zbikowski Returns to St. Patrick

By John Montgomery

Welcome back. Welcome home.

Zbikowski is BAAAAAAAACK in Chicago at St. Patrick.

Tom Zbikowski is hoping to use his life experiences on and off the field to revitalize the football program at St. Patrick High School in Chicago. He has compiled an impressive resume from his playing days at Buffalo Grove, Notre Dame and the Baltimore Ravens in the NFL. Zbikowski, who grew up wanting to be the next Mike Tyson and was even unbeaten in eight bouts as a professional boxer, also hopes to start a boxing program at St. Patrick after the football season. His next major goal is to fight actor Jake Paul.

For now, his focus is on Shamrock football after spending the last three football seasons as an assistant coach at Western Michigan and Brown.

Nobody has to remind Zbikowski that St. Patrick hasn’t won a conference championship in football since 2002. For whatever reason, the Shamrocks haven’t been able to achieve success on a consistent basis, usually with at least one team standing in the way. In basketball, it was St. Joseph. In football, it was Joliet Catholic, a 15-time state champion.

St. Patrick is best known for its success in basketball with back-to-back 500-game winning coaches Max Kurland and Mike Bailey, who guided the Shamrocks to third place in last year’s Class 3A tournament.

In football, St. Patrick overcame a 5-4 regular season in 2021 to advance to the Class 5A quarterfinals. Previously, they had won only eight games in the last three seasons. The Shamrocks have won 11 conference championships but never have won a state football title or a Prep Bowl.

St. Patrick alumni, students and fans are hoping that Zbikowski can have the same impact that former Gordon and DePaul basketball star Tom Kleinschmidt has had at DePaul Prep, which has won three state championships in a row. And former Northern Illinois University quarterback Jordan Lynch, who has guided his alma mater Mount Carmel to four state championships, including the three in a row.

Zbikowski has an interesting perspective on his first head coaching assignment.

“I didn’t come (to St. Patrick) to win a state championship but that would be nice,” he said following a recent practice session. “I don’t want to go 0-9, either. I want to win and send kids to college. I will measure my success by the number of kids who receive scholarships to play college football. That number is very important to me.”

The Shamrocks open their 2025 regular season on Friday night at Yorkville. They will entertain Elgin Larkin in their home opener at Triton College in Week 2.

Zbikowski’s new boss, St. Patrick president Dan Santucci, a former NFL player, recalls when he and Zbikowski were teammates at Notre Dame. 

“I had the privilege of having Tom has a teammate and there is no one who has played with more passion and intensity than him,” Santucci said.

“Tom’s experience at the highest level of football will be a tremendous asset to St. Patrick,” said St. Patrick athletic director Matt Reardon.

To generate more interest among alumni, St Patrick has plans to play an alumni football game at newly renovated Hanson Stadium on a yearly basis.

Meanwhile, his focus is on the 2025 season. He hired former St. Patrick quarterback Tom Barrett to run the Shamrocks’ offense and former Holy Cross football player Kevin Walz to run the defense with help from former St. Patrick coach Dan Galante, who won 77 games at the Northwest Side school.

Zbikowski said his team will throw the football while running a 4-3 defense.

“Working with Tom has been a great experience,” Barrett said. “Everybody thought we were getting this Buddy Ryan guru but he knows a lot about the game of football. He is more concerned about impacting young men.”

Zbikowski’s life in the NFL wasn't as glamorous as many people might believe with games practices and meetings every week.

“People don’t understand the loneliness of being a professional athlete,” he said. “There isn’t enough money in the world.”

And he recalls his never-to-be-forgotten experiences as a two-time All-America defensive back at Notre Dame in 2005 and 2006.

“It was more impressive that I graduated from Notre Dame,” he admitted. “I wasn’t a good student.”

For the time being, he is more anxious to prove he is a good coach. To build a successful program at St. Patrick, Zbikowski knows he must compete on and off the field against neighborhood rival DePaul Prep, which won the Class 4A football championship last year.

The Shamrocks are in the Purple Division of the newly realigned Chicago Catholic League with DePaul Prep, Benet and St. Viator. They have only four returning starters and a new quarterback in Gavin Gardner.

Competing in the Catholic League allows Zbikowski an opportunity to fulfill another dream—to play in the Prep Bowl against the Chicago Public League champion in a classic city rivalry that dates to 1934. And if he has any influence in the matter, he hopes to see the game moved back to Soldier Field.

"I would love the opportunity for our team to play in that game,"

But first is the matchup Friday night  at Yorkville. Game 1 of his new career with the Shamrocks

“I am excited about Friday night. I know my boys have worked hard,” Zbikowski said after Monday’s practice. He also was inspired by his team’s performance in a scrimmage against Hersey on August 22 that attracted a large crowd in Arlington Heights.

“That scrimmage was the most beneficial thing we have done,” he said. “I have accomplished many things in my life but having the ability to impact a young man’s life is most important.”

The first opportunity is Friday night against Yorkville.      

Photo credit: St. Patrick High School

DePaul Prep Baseball is Going to State; 13-3 Victory over Byron

The DePaul Prep Rams (23-14, 8-8) landed in Rockford for the IHSA 2A baseball super-sectional against the Byron Tigers. The convincing 13-3 win sends the Rams to the State Finals in Peoria this coming weekend.

Before, during and after the game, the Rams were loose. Didn’t seem like a super-sectional. Just like another game. Just fun to play baseball. Not so much for Sam Colon, the Rams’ first-year manager. His normal easy going demeanor seemed a bit more focused, serious, businesslike.

And land on the Byron Tigers the Rams did with four runs in the bottom of the first inning. Byron rallied with three in the top of the second. That’s about as good as they had. The Rams just put it on them after that. Three in the bottom of the second. Another in the fourth. Three more in the fifth and two in the bottom of the sixth for a walk off ten run slaughter rule victory.

Senior pitcher, the always focused and businesslike Robert Rivera pitched well. Rivera struggled in the top of the second. A balk with nobody out and men on first and third scored the Tigers’ A. Lorenz from third.

“I just thought shake it off. Being the pitcher on the mound, you’re the leader. I have hold my composure and show everyone it’s not going to phase me. Even letting in those three runs, I knew I could fight back,” Rams’ pitcher Robert Rivera said.

“I changed up my mechanics. I went to stay closed longer. I started leaning more toward the plate. It helped me control my curveball. It really upped my [velocity] on my fastball too.”

The three runs in the top of the second were the only runs he would allow.

At bat, the whole team contributed--total team victory. Michigan commit and the fastest man on the field, AJ Garcia had a hit, a stolen base and two walks scoring three runs. Vance Kurakowa had a hit and run scored. Catcher Oliver Vigerust was hit by a pitch, had a hit and a base-on-balls. First baseman Kevin O’Connor had a huge game with three hits, two RBI’s and a walk. Griffin Horne had a hit and scored two runs. Beni Espinosa had three hits, four RBI’s, scored two runs and a walk. Third baseman Cameron Klein three hits and an RBI. Carter Levine two hits and three RBI’s, not to mention a spectacular diving catch in right field. Addison Latko had two hits, including a legged out triple and gapper in right center, and scored a run, but no homeruns today.

As hurtful as the super-sectional loss to Byron by the DePaul Prep womens’ basketball team was in March, this emotional super-sectional victory for the Rams took some of the sting out of it.

“I told Sarah [Zarymbski, girls basketball coach and 2014 Gordon Tech classmate of the Sam Colon] that we would get some revenge for her,” Rams head coach Sam Colon said after the game.   

“This team has got all the talent in the world. It’s a matter of can you put it all together in a year. Our first goal was to win the [Chicago Catholic] League [White]; we put ourselves in a position to get there. We didn’t get there. The next goal was to get a second season. The expectation was to get to Peoria. Now it’s to win it.”

It’s third trip to State for the Rams so far this year. Mitch Baum’s boys’ cross-country team won a state title in November. Tom Kleinschmidt’s boys’ basketball team won the 2A basketball state title in March. Now it’s Sammy’s turn.

The Rams will face the Columbia High School Eagles (30-4), from south of St. Louis, at the Peoria Chiefs’ stadium, Dozer Park, on Friday at 3:00 p.m. The other state semi-final will feature Joliet Catholic v. Quincy Notre Dame. The Championship game will be Saturday at 5:30.