Tom Flacco Explained

Tom Flacco
Position:Quarterback
Birth Date:2 November 1994
Birth Place:Audubon, New Jersey, U.S.
Height Ft:6
Height In:1
Weight Lb:205
High School:Eastern (NJ)
College:Western Michigan (2015–2016)
Rutgers (2017)
Towson (2018–2019)
Undraftedyear:2020
Pastteams:
Pastcoaching:
  • Delaware (2022–2023)
    Volunteer assistant coach/offense
Cfl:tom-flacco/164824/

Tom Patrick Flacco (born November 2, 1994) is an American football quarterback. He attended three colleges: Western Michigan, Rutgers, and Towson.[1] He also played baseball, and was drafted in the 32nd round of the 2014 MLB Draft by the Philadelphia Phillies. Flacco is the younger brother of Indianapolis Colts quarterback Joe Flacco. He has also had stints in the Canadian Football League (CFL) with the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Ottawa Redblacks.

Early years

Flacco was born on November 2, 1994, in Audubon, New Jersey. After moving to Voorhees Township, New Jersey, he transferred after one year at Camden Catholic High School to Eastern Regional High School, where he got the starting assignment as quarterback.[2] He played baseball and football there which led to him being drafted in the 32nd round of the 2014 MLB Draft by the Philadelphia Phillies.[3] [4] In football, he had over 7,250 passing yards including 2,782 yards as a senior.[5] He also had 25 passing touchdowns and 12 rushing touchdowns in his senior year.[5] His 7,000 plus passing yards were third most in school history at the time of his graduation.[6]

College career

Western Michigan

His first two seasons of college football came at Western Michigan.[7] He played two seasons with them, mostly as a backup.[8]

Rutgers

In 2017, he transferred to Rutgers University.[6] [9] [10] Due to transfer rules, he could not play in the season. The next year he transferred to Towson.

Towson

His first season as a starter in college came in 2018, with the Towson Tigers.[11] [12] [13] [14] [15] He was Towson's starting quarterback in all 12 games. He finished in the top-25 in several Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) categories, they included: finishing 3rd in total offense, 5th in passing yards, 12th in passing yards per game, 6th in passing touchdowns, 10th in completions per game, and 22nd in completion percentage. He was named Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) Offensive Player of the Week thrice, FCS Offensive Player of the Week once, and FCS Honorable Mention Player of the Week twice. He tied the Towson single season record with 28 passing touchdowns.[5] He also was Towson's leader in rushing with 742 yards.[5] Flacco had over 10 completions, 125 passing yards and more than one passing touchdown in every game. Flacco finished fifth for the Walter Payton Award and was named HERO Sports Third Team honors.[5] Other honors include being named CAA Offensive Player of the Year and ECAC Offensive Player of the Year. Tom was also named All-CAA First Team.[5]

His final season was in 2019.[16] [17] [18] He finished 13th in voting for the Walter Payton award, being the first Towson player to ever be a finalist two separate seasons.[5] In only two seasons with Towson, he was third in their history for passing touchdowns with 50.[5] On October 19, he threw and ran for a combined 6 touchdowns in a win over Bucknell.[5] He had 2,831 passing yards for 22 touchdowns in the season.[5]

He made a return to baseball in 2019 after not playing since 2014.[19] [20] [21] [22] He played in 44 games with 38 starts.[23]

Professional career

Saskatchewan Roughriders

Flacco went undrafted in the 2020 NFL draft. He reportedly had tryouts with the Arizona Cardinals, but did not sign with them.[24] [25] In January 2021, Flacco signed a contract with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League (CFL).[26] [27] [28] [29] He was released on July 30, 2021.[30]

Ottawa Redblacks

On October 20, 2021, Flacco was signed by the Ottawa Redblacks of the CFL.[31] [32]

Houston Roughnecks

On December 8, 2023, Flacco signed with the Houston Roughnecks of the XFL.[33] The Roughnecks brand was transferred to the Houston Gamblers when the XFL and United States Football League merged to create the United Football League (UFL).[34]

San Antonio Brahmas

On January 31, 2024, Flacco was signed by the San Antonio Brahmas of the UFL.[35] He was waived on May 1.[36]

Coaching career

In 2022, Flacco was named a volunteer assistant coach of offense for the Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens football team, the team his brother played for. He left in 2023 to join the UFL as a player.[37]

Personal life

Flacco has five older siblings. His oldest brother, Joe, is a quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts, and previously the Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens, Philadelphia Eagles, Denver Broncos, and New York Jets. Another brother, Mike, played four years of minor league baseball in the Baltimore Orioles organization, and was also briefly in the NFL. His brother John played as a safety at Stanford.[6]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Bleier . Evan . April 3, 2020 . Joe Flacco's Little Brother Is Hoping for an NFL Shot . January 15, 2024 . InsideHook.com.
  2. https://thesunpapers.com/2013/02/26/tom-flacco-could-follow-in-his-brothers-footsteps/ "Tom Flacco could follow in his brother’s footsteps"
  3. Web site: Joe Flacco's brother, Tom, drafted by Phillies. The Baltimore. Sun. capitalgazette.com. June 8, 2014 .
  4. Web site: Phillies draft Joe Flacco's brother Tom in 2014 MLB Draft. CBSSports.com. June 9, 2014 .
  5. Web site: Tom Flacco – Football. Towson University Athletics.
  6. Web site: Tom Flacco – Football. Rutgers University Athletics.
  7. Web site: September 21, 2015. Western Michigan's Tom Flacco a 'completely different' QB than Baltimore Ravens' Joe Flacco. April 29, 2021. mlive. en.
  8. Web site: Tom Flacco – Football. Western Michigan University Athletics.
  9. Web site: Breitman. Aaron. July 27, 2017. Report: Western Michigan QB Tom Flacco Transferring To Rutgers. April 29, 2021. On the Banks. en.
  10. Web site: Paul. Tony. Joe Flacco's younger brother transferring out of WMU. April 29, 2021. The Detroit News. en-US.
  11. Web site: Tom Flacco Is Tired of Being Compared to His Older Brother. October 26, 2018. Baltimore Magazine.
  12. Web site: Hartsell. Jeff. The Citadel makes Tom Flacco look elite in a 44–27 loss at Towson. April 29, 2021. Post and Courier. September 29, 2018 . en.
  13. Web site: Flacco has Tigers off to fast start. April 29, 2021. Towson University. en.
  14. Web site: Fominykh. Katherine. Towson hopes quarterback Tom Flacco, Joe's younger brother, will help football team bounce back. April 29, 2021. capitalgazette.com. en-US.
  15. Web site: Lee. Edward. New starting quarterback Tom Flacco sparks Towson football to 36–10 win over Morgan State. April 29, 2021. courant.com.
  16. Web site: Towson's Tom Flacco Looks To Improve Draft Stock At The Tropical Bowl – FloFootball. www.flofootball.com.
  17. Web site: Eric DeCosta Admires Tom Flacco's Grit: 'He's Got a Shot'. www.baltimoreravens.com.
  18. Web site: Towson's Tom Flacco leads National team in Tropical Bowl. April 29, 2021. FOX Sports. en-US.
  19. Web site: Towson's Tom Flacco Pulling Double Duty As Quarterback, Outfielder. March 15, 2019.
  20. Web site: Tom Flacco – Baseball. Towson University Athletics.
  21. Web site: Towson quarterback Tom Flacco taking swing at baseball this spring. Edward. Lee. baltimoresun.com. April 6, 2019 .
  22. Web site: After a Five Year Hiatus, Tom Flacco Tries Baseball at Towson. Morgan. Adsit. May 2, 2019. WBFF.
  23. Web site: Tom Flacco College Leagues Statistics & History. Baseball-Reference.com.
  24. Web site: Joe Flacco's brother Tom gets tryout with Cardinals. August 30, 2020. Yardbarker.
  25. Web site: Papke. Grey. August 30, 2020. Joe Flacco's brother Tom gets tryout with Cardinals. April 29, 2021. Larry Brown Sports. en.
  26. Web site: Roughriders sign Tom Flacco, younger brother of 2013 Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco. leaderpost.
  27. Web site: Saskatchewan Roughriders sign quarterback Tom Flacco – TSN.ca. The Canadian Press. January 22, 2021. TSN.
  28. Web site: Saskatchewan Roughriders add to depth at quarterback with signing of Tom Flacco. January 22, 2021. thestar.com.
  29. News: The Canadian Press. January 22, 2021. Roughriders sign quarterback Tom Flacco. en-CA. Winnipeg Free Press. April 29, 2021.
  30. Web site: QB Tom Flacco among Saskatchewan Roughriders' cuts. leaderpost.
  31. Web site: October 19, 2021. REDBLACKS sign QB Tom Flacco. CFL.ca. en.
  32. Web site: Towson Alum Flacco Signed by Ottawa Redblacks in Canadian Football League. Towson University Athletics. October 20, 2021 . en.
  33. Web site: XFL Transactions . December 11, 2023 . www.xfl.com . en.
  34. Web site: Seifert . Kevin . January 1, 2024 . Newly formed United Football League sets 8 markets, tabs coaches . January 15, 2024 . ESPN.com.
  35. News: UFL Player Transactions – Wednesday January 31, 2024 . UFLBoard.com . January 31, 2024 . February 1, 2024.
  36. News: UFL Player Transactions, May 1, 2024 . UFLBoard.com . May 2, 2024 . May 2, 2024.
  37. Web site: Tom Flacco Joins Delaware Football Coaching Staff. bluehens.com. University of Delaware. August 5, 2022.