Sophomore quarterback Hewitt Tomlin led the Hopkins football team to a Conference Championship and NCAA berth this past weekend, and for his accolades he is our News-Letter Athlete of Week.
Hewitt Tomlin is no newcomer when it comes to the sport of football. The sophomore quarterback has been tossing the pigskin since he moved to the U.S. in 1998. "I've always enjoyed it; it's the only sport I've played continuously since then. The best part of football is the nature of the teammates that play it," he said.
After an early-season loss to Delaware Valley, Tomlin led the Jays to an 8-2 record. Hopkins entered last Saturday in a tie for first in the Centennial Conference.
The Jay won the championship outright with their 38-14 win over McDaniel and Dickinson's 35-32 loss to Ursinus. The win gave Hopkins its fifth conference title since 2002 and also qualified the Jays for the NCAA playoffs.
"Winning the conference is almost an indescribable feeling, especially since we are the uncontested champions," Tomlin said. "It's been the greatest moment of this year, if not my life, in regards to sports."
Off the field, Tomlin is involved heavily in both academics and social activities on campus. He chose Hopkins because of the promise of playing as a young player and the academic rigor of the school. A public health major, Tomlin is a member of the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity and enjoys the social events on campus.
"I think that Hopkins offers a lot socially and I haven't been really disappointed with any social aspects on campus," he said. "I think anyone here can have a good time if they decide to have a good time first. It's a very tough balance but the surprising thing is that football helps keep you on schedule and gives some organization to your time schedule," Tomlin said.
Football has always been the focus of Tomlin's recreational life. He has also tried club lacrosse at Hopkins, as the sport is not played in his home state of Tennessee.He is in a unique role on the team because he is the starting quarterback as only a sophomore, and started for most of his freshman season.
"It's a trap in a way. You want to tell yourself that you've arrived, but the reality is that I'm young and I have a lot to learn," he said. "The fact that a lot of upperclassmen look to me for big things is honoring and I'm thankful for my teammates in believing in me despite my age."
But as one of the younger contributing players on the team, Tomlin also finds himself looking up to the more veteran players on the roster as well.
"I look up to a lot of guys on the team, but (senior co-captain) Tim Miller has to be the one I would want to be like the most. He's a superb football player and tears it up in the classroom, a real class act. Brian Hopkins also is a teammate that I admire a lot" Tomlin said.
According to Tomlin, he believes his greatest asset to be his arm strength and his greatest weakness to be his risk taking.
"I would say having a strong arm is something I've always had since being a kid," he said. "My weakness could be my pride when it comes to something that isn't advised. I will sometimes make throws that aren't good just to see if I can make them."
He attributes his growth as his quarterback to both his current head coach, Jim Margraff and quarterbacks coach, Dan Swanstrom.
"Coach Margraff gives me the big picture stuff and Coach Swanstrom has transformed me into the quarterback I am today with both physical and mental teaching," Tomlin said.
He hopes to carry his team's three-game winning streak into the NCAA playoffs this Saturday. The undefeated Hampden-Sydney Tigers will host the Jays at noon.
Tomlin believes his team will be able to win the game. "We consider ourselves playoff contenders and we would like to see ourselves go to the second round at least" Tomlin said.
