David Garrard facts for kids
Garrard with the Jacksonville Jaguars
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| Position: | Quarterback | ||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
| Born: | February 14, 1978 East Orange, New Jersey, U.S. |
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| Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 235 lb (107 kg) | ||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||
| High school: | Southern Durham (Durham, North Carolina) |
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| College: | East Carolina (1997–2001) | ||||||||||||||||
| NFL Draft: | 2002 / Round: 4 / Pick: 108 | ||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||||||||||||||
David Douglas Garrard, born on February 14, 1978, is a former American football quarterback. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for 10 seasons. Garrard played college football for the East Carolina Pirates. The Jacksonville Jaguars picked him in the fourth round of the 2002 NFL draft. He spent nine seasons with the Jaguars. In 2007, he led them to their first playoff win since 1999. He was also chosen for the Pro Bowl in 2009. Later, he played for the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets.
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Early Life and Giving Back
David Garrard was born in East Orange, New Jersey. He grew up in Durham, North Carolina. When he was fourteen, his mother passed away from breast cancer. This experience inspired him. When he became a professional football player, he started The David Garrard Foundation. This foundation works to raise awareness and support research for breast cancer.
High School Football Star
Garrard went to Southern High School in Durham. There, he was named an All-America player by Prep Stars. He was also considered the best high school quarterback in North Carolina. Coaches said he had one of the strongest arms they had ever seen. They even compared him to former NFL quarterback Roman Gabriel.
College Football Career
Garrard attended East Carolina University. He played for the East Carolina Pirates football team. Even though he was bigger than most quarterbacks, he could move very well. His coach, Steve Logan, joked that tackling Garrard was like "getting hit by a beer truck." Garrard was also very tough. He started every game for the Pirates from 1999 to 2001.
Big Wins and Challenges
In his second year, Garrard led the Pirates to a 9–3 record. They won against strong teams like the West Virginia Mountaineers and Miami Hurricanes. In one game against Miami, East Carolina came back from being down 20–3. They won 27–23. Garrard threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to Keith Stokes to win the game. This victory helped ECU get ranked in the top 25 college football teams.
The Pirates finished 8–4 in Garrard's junior year. He had an amazing touchdown pass and a rushing touchdown in a 40–27 win against Texas Tech. His senior season started with high hopes. However, the team finished with a 6–6 record.
A Memorable Final Game
Garrard's last college game was against Marshall University. Their quarterback was Byron Leftwich. Garrard and Leftwich would later become teammates with the Jacksonville Jaguars. In that game, Marshall came back from being down thirty points. They beat East Carolina 64–61 in double-overtime. This was one of the highest-scoring bowl games in college football history at that time.
Garrard broke 28 school records at East Carolina. He was one of the few quarterbacks to have over 9,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards in college. He graduated from East Carolina University in 2001. He earned a degree in Construction Management.
College Statistics
| Season | Games | Passing | Rushing | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | ||
| East Carolina Pirates | ||||||||||||||||
| 1997 | Redshirt  |
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| 1998 | 11 | 6 | 3−3 | 157 | 255 | 61.6 | 2,091 | 8.2 | 14 | 7 | 143.1 | 127 | 164 | 1.3 | 2 | |
| 1999 | 12 | 12 | 9−3 | 181 | 312 | 58.0 | 2,359 | 7.6 | 14 | 12 | 128.6 | 138 | 493 | 3.6 | 8 | |
| 2000 | 12 | 12 | 8−4 | 164 | 312 | 52.6 | 2,332 | 7.5 | 19 | 11 | 128.4 | 135 | 358 | 2.7 | 5 | |
| 2001 | 12 | 12 | 6−6 | 164 | 290 | 56.6 | 2,247 | 7.7 | 13 | 9 | 130.2 | 116 | 194 | 1.7 | 6 | |
| Career | 47 | 42 | 26−16 | 666 | 1,169 | 57.0 | 9,029 | 7.7 | 60 | 39 | 132.1 | 516 | 1,209 | 2.3 | 21 | |
Professional Football Career
The Jacksonville Jaguars picked David Garrard in the 2002 NFL Draft. He was the 108th player chosen overall. The head coach, Tom Coughlin, thought Garrard would eventually become the team's main quarterback. However, Coughlin left the team. The Jaguars then drafted another quarterback, Byron Leftwich, in 2003. Garrard continued to be the backup quarterback.
Overcoming Health Challenges
In 2004, Garrard was diagnosed with Crohn's disease. This is a condition that affects the intestines. He had surgery in June 2004 to remove a part of his intestines. Even after surgery, he was healthy enough to play in the 2004 season. He started one game that year and threw two touchdowns to win in overtime.
In 2005, Leftwich got injured. Garrard stepped in and led the Jaguars to a great 5–1 record in their last six games. This helped the team make it to the playoffs. He played well, throwing for over 1,100 yards.
In 2006, Garrard became the starting quarterback for the rest of the season. He led Jacksonville to a 5–2 record in his first seven starts. People wondered if he would replace Leftwich for good.
Becoming the Starter
Before the 2007 season, Garrard played better than Leftwich in preseason games. So, on August 31, 2007, coach Jack Del Rio named Garrard the starting quarterback. The Jaguars then released Leftwich.
In his first full season as the starter, Garrard led the Jaguars to a fantastic 10–2 record. He threw for 18 touchdowns and over 2,500 yards in 12 games. He only threw three interceptions all year. This gave him a very high quarterback rating of 102.2.
On January 5, 2008, Garrard led his team to a thrilling 31–29 playoff victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. He made a key 32-yard run on a fourth-down play. This helped set up the game-winning field goal for the Jaguars. A week later, he set franchise records in a playoff game against the unbeaten New England Patriots. He completed 22 passes for 278 yards and two touchdowns. The Patriots won that game 31–20.
In April 2008, Garrard signed a big contract extension with the Jaguars. It was worth $60 million over six years.
Garrard played all 16 games in both the 2008 and 2009 seasons. However, the team had tough years with many injuries. In 2009, Garrard was chosen for the Pro Bowl. He played well in the game, throwing for 183 yards and a touchdown.
In 2010, he had another strong year. He threw for 23 touchdowns and over 2,700 yards. In one game against the Dallas Cowboys, he had an amazing performance. He completed 17 of 21 passes for 260 yards and four touchdowns. He also rushed for another touchdown.
Even after his Pro Bowl season, the Jaguars drafted a new quarterback, Blaine Gabbert. Garrard was released by Jacksonville on September 6, 2011. This was less than a week before the new season began.
Later Career and Retirement
After leaving Jacksonville, Garrard had surgery on a back injury. He then signed with the Miami Dolphins in March 2012. He was expected to be their starting quarterback. However, he had knee surgery in August and was released by the Dolphins in September 2012.
The New York Jets signed Garrard in March 2013. But he decided to retire on May 15, 2013. His knee swelling made it hard for him to play. After resting his knee, Garrard decided to try a comeback. The Jets allowed him to return in October 2013.
On May 8, 2015, David Garrard signed a special contract with the Jaguars. This allowed him to officially retire as a member of the team he played for the longest.
NFL Career Statistics
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
Regular season
| Year | Team | Games | Passing | Rushing | Sacks | Fumbles | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Sck | SckY | Fum | Lost | ||
| 2002 | JAX | 4 | 1 | 0–1 | 23 | 46 | 50.0 | 231 | 5.0 | 22 | 1 | 2 | 53.8 | 25 | 139 | 5.6 | 41 | 2 | 7 | 40 | 1 | 1 |
| 2003 | JAX | 2 | 0 | – | 9 | 12 | 75.0 | 86 | 7.2 | 28 | 1 | 0 | 122.2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2004 | JAX | 4 | 2 | 1–1 | 38 | 72 | 52.8 | 374 | 5.2 | 36 | 2 | 1 | 71.2 | 12 | 76 | 6.3 | 12 | 1 | 6 | 35 | 0 | 0 |
| 2005 | JAX | 7 | 5 | 4–1 | 98 | 168 | 58.3 | 1,117 | 6.6 | 37 | 4 | 1 | 83.9 | 31 | 172 | 5.5 | 28 | 3 | 8 | 45 | 4 | 1 |
| 2006 | JAX | 11 | 10 | 5–5 | 145 | 241 | 60.2 | 1,735 | 7.2 | 49 | 10 | 9 | 80.5 | 47 | 250 | 5.3 | 20 | 0 | 20 | 119 | 4 | 2 |
| 2007 | JAX | 12 | 12 | 9–3 | 208 | 325 | 64.0 | 2,509 | 7.7 | 59 | 18 | 3 | 102.2 | 49 | 185 | 3.8 | 19 | 1 | 21 | 99 | 3 | 2 |
| 2008 | JAX | 16 | 16 | 5–11 | 335 | 535 | 62.6 | 3,620 | 6.8 | 41 | 15 | 13 | 81.7 | 73 | 322 | 4.4 | 24 | 2 | 42 | 288 | 7 | 3 |
| 2009 | JAX | 16 | 16 | 7–9 | 314 | 516 | 60.9 | 3,597 | 7.0 | 63 | 15 | 10 | 83.5 | 77 | 323 | 4.2 | 30 | 3 | 42 | 236 | 14 | 8 |
| 2010 | JAX | 14 | 14 | 8–6 | 236 | 366 | 64.5 | 2,734 | 7.5 | 75 | 23 | 15 | 90.8 | 66 | 279 | 4.2 | 25 | 5 | 33 | 253 | 11 | 4 |
| Career | 86 | 76 | 39–37 | 1,406 | 2,281 | 61.6 | 16,003 | 7.0 | 75 | 89 | 54 | 85.8 | 380 | 1,746 | 4.6 | 41 | 17 | 179 | 1,115 | 44 | 21 | |
Postseason
| Year | Team | Games | Passing | Rushing | Sacks | Fumbles | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Sck | SckY | Fum | Lost | ||
| 2005 | JAX | 1 | 0 | – | 3 | 8 | 37.5 | 68 | 8.5 | 41 | 0 | 0 | 68.7 | 2 | 14 | 7.0 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| 2007 | JAX | 2 | 2 | 1–1 | 31 | 54 | 57.4 | 418 | 7.7 | 43 | 3 | 3 | 77.5 | 8 | 72 | 9.0 | 32 | 0 | 5 | 44 | 1 | 1 |
| Career | 3 | 2 | 1–1 | 34 | 62 | 54.8 | 486 | 7.8 | 43 | 3 | 3 | 76.4 | 10 | 86 | 8.6 | 32 | 0 | 7 | 56 | 1 | 1 | |
Franchise Records
As of July 2020, David Garrard held several Jacksonville Jaguars team records, including:
- Highest passer rating for a career (85.8).
- Highest passer rating in a single season (102.2 in 2007).
- Highest passer rating in a single game (157.8 on October 31, 2010, against Dallas).
- Most times sacked in a playoff season (5 in 2007, shared with other players).
- Most times sacked in a playoff game (4 on January 5, 2008, against Pittsburgh).
- Highest yards per attempt in playoffs (7.84).
- Highest yards per attempt in a playoff season (7.74 in 2007).
Personal Life
David Garrard proposed to his wife, Mary Knox, before a Jaguars preseason game in 2002. The proposal was shown on the stadium's big screen. They got married in February 2003 and have three children.
Garrard lives with Crohn's disease. He has appeared in TV commercials to talk about treating the illness. He has also spoken to children at the Painted Turtle Camp. This camp is for kids with health conditions, and he shares his experiences living with Crohn's disease.
Garrard has also been in a commercial for Zaxby's, a restaurant chain. Since 2007, he has been a spokesperson for 121 Financial Credit Union.
Garrard is a Christian. He has spoken about his faith, saying it gives him "so much peace." He believes he can always count on the Lord to be there for him.
