If it weren’t for being kicked off his high school football team, Brian Garcia probably wouldn’t be at Harvard.

Garcia—the Crimson’s standout junior defensive end—was a highly sought-after high school prospect at Tampa Catholic, recruited by such powerhouses as Florida State and Georgia Tech.

Until, that is, he ran into some disciplinary issues his senior year and was suspended from the team.

“Being from Florida, it was all about Miami, Florida and, of course, Florida State from the beginning,” Garcia says. “I really wanted to go to FSU.”

But after his suspension, the Seminoles’ interest waned.

“I had to tell the coach [Bobby Bowden] that I got kicked off my team,” Garcia says. “After that, the big programs stopped calling.”

But Garcia has turned what was once a heartbreaking situation into a positive.

“It opened up the doors for Harvard, and I’m glad,” Garcia says. “I never looked back from there.”

Garcia’s initial Harvard experience was stellar.

“I visited Harvard and it was out-of-this world for me. I had never experienced anything like it,” he says. “One night, I was lying awake and it hit me—go to Harvard.”

Although the story of Garcia’s arrival at Harvard seems cosmically fated, his first two years here didn’t align quite as well. Garcia has run into his share of obstacles.

Injuries plagued his first two years here. In 2001, his first Crimson campaign, Garcia was nicked up with shoulder problems and suffered a sprained ankle in mid-season. Last year, in only the Crimson’s third preseason practice, he suffered a stress fracture in his left foot. The injury sidelined him for nearly six weeks.

“Recovering from the injury was tough, but not so much the physical aspects. Mentally it was really hard,” Garcia says. “Once I got back on the sidelines, everything was just too fast. I’d been away from the action too long.”

A lack of playing time initially hampered Garcia psychologically, as well.

“I had a really tough time adjusting to not starting,” Garcia says.