As the youngest of 5 siblings and a large extended family, TJ has always had a competitive streak. Not letting the fact that his brothers were older, or his cousins were bigger ever deter him TJ always looked for a way to out smart or out maneuver when he was physically out matched. TJ took this competitive attitude and applied it to sports immediately. The drive to not only win but be the best made TJ stand out as a leader and helped elevate the people around him and push them to do better. Once TJ got to Jr High and High school he decided to focus on a primarily on football, although still participating in Track and Field (throwing shot and disc). He attended multiple football camps and spent countless hours in the off season making his cousins and buddies run routes and come at him.
Playing at Billings Central Catholic in his hometown of Billings, MT, TJ earned the starting role at QB halfway through his sophomore season, taking the team from a 1-2 starts to a 7-3 season (just missing the playoffs) his Jr year took the team to 10-2 and in his senior year managed the elusive 12-0 he had always pushed for. TJ was a captain both JR and SR year.
TJ finished his senior campaign as the #1 QB in the state of Montana and one of the top QB recruits in the country.
Varsity Career Stats:
31 GP
Passing:
582 completions
831 attempts
7,982 yrds
Avg YPC 13.72
107 TD
23 INT
Rushing:
109 Carriers
810 yds
11 TD
8 Fumbles