TOWSON, Md. - When the flash of realization comes that years of toil and sweat and practice and play, rinse and repeat have come to an abrupt end, it can throw you for a loop.
For left tackle Henry Glackin, that instant came at the end of Saturday's game with Lehigh as the Engineers got a final first down that salted away a 40-38 win over Towson in the NCAA FCS playoffs.
“When that happened, it all kind of sunk in that that was it,” said Glackin.
That moment was doubly cruel for Glackin. It ended the best season of his career, a year that saw Glackin reach the postseason for the first time ever as well as receive a designation on the All-Colonial Athletic Association second team.
As a senior, that Lehigh first down brought down the curtain on his entire Towson career, one that not only saw him become the first offensive lineman to start as a true freshman since 2002 but also become the anchor of a squad that advanced from last place in the league to the CAA title the year after.
“We can be happy with what we did, but you can't be satisfied because we know our potential and the potential we did have to achieve a goal that we wanted,” said Glackin. “But, we can't be too disappointed with our performance because we went from worst to first in one year. Not many teams do that.”
While the Tigers were picked to finish last in the 11-team CAA in preseason prognostications of league coaches and media during the summer, Glackin said he could see the signs of surprise coming in the workouts that came last winter following a 1-10 season.
“In the past, we had guys who were going and doing their own thing because we were losing and no one believed we could win,” said Glackin, a team captain this season. “This year, everybody knew we had the talent to win games and do what we did. And they bought into it and everybody was playing for each other.”
Sure enough, the hard work and camaraderie of the winter, spring and summer turned into win after win after win in the fall and the Tigers were a bonafide hit.
Even after a loss to Maryland, Glackin said, the team hung together, getting big wins over preseason CAA favorite William & Mary and Old Dominion to get back on track.
“Every game that we won and we kept going, it just kept building the confidence that we can do this,” said Glackin. “We were just learning as we went (along). That's basically all we could do. As we were winning, we learned how to do and what to do. And the coaching staff, a lot of them have been with winning teams, so they knew what to do so they helped us out a lot with what we should do.”
What they did was coalesce behind a stout defense and the leadership of sophomore quarterback Grant Enders, who moved up the depth chart in the summer and became a calming, cooling presence to trigger an offense.
“When times are tough, he (Enders) has a smile on his face,” said Glackin. “He's dancing in the background to music and that kind of loosens things up. He's a great leader. He wants to win.
“That's what he wants to do," Glackin added. "He loves all of us and we love all of him.”
With CAA Coach of the Year Rob Ambrose at the helm and Enders and running back Terrance West, the league's offensive rookie of the year, returning among others, the Tigers head to 2012 with a world of promise and the chance to build on this year's foundation to ensure that next year's last moment is a lot better than this year's.
Nothing would make Glackin happier.
“I know all the guys are hungry and I'm excited because the team's going to be great for the next few years,” he said. “It's going to be exciting to see. I'm just glad that me and the seniors were able to lead by example and show the younger guys what it takes to get through the hard times."
Glackin added, "And when you do get through the hard times and you work your butt off, good things do happen.”
