Ethan Garbers reveals where his resiliency comes from

Resiliency is nothing new for Ethan Garbers. After UCLA’s 35-22 win over Boise State in the LA Bowl, the Bruins’ quarterback revealed where his endless deposits of grit come from.

“I would just say my entire football career has been resilient,” Garbers said. “And you know, that’s life. Coach Kelly says it all the time. Life is hard and if you can find a way to get through these battles and win those battles, it’s going to help you out in the long run. So I mean, that was pretty much it.”

Garbers put his resiliency on display for the college football world in the win. Garbers did not start the game due to illness. However, after Collin Schlee suffered an injury in the third quarter, Garbers was left with no choice but to play.

He answered the call, and then some. In the victory, Garbers completed 9-of-his-12 pass attempts for 152 yards and two touchdowns without throwing an interception. Garbers’ arm wasn’t his only threat. The California native tallied 38 yards on a mere three carries, as well.

Under Garbers’ leadership, the Bruins outscored Boise State 28-6 in the second half. UCLA head coach Chip Kelly couldn’t be proud of Garbers’ resilience.

“I asked him; he didn’t feel great in warm-ups. He said he felt good to be a backup,” Kelly said. “Then, when Schlee went down on that long run, I asked him are you good to go? And he said, ‘I’m good to go, Coach.’ He was a tremendous jump start for us. He’s a special kid, and I’m really proud of him.”

Ethan Garbers won over UCLA this season

Garbers showed off his toughness in more than one game this year. Throughout the season, Garber split minutes with former five-star QB Dante Moore. Both players collected over 1,000 passing yards and 10 touchdowns in the 2023 campaign.

Nonetheless, as the season dwindled to a close, Garbers was UCLA’s obvious choice to be next year’s starting quarterback. Consequently, Moore entered the transfer portal after the regular season concluded.

Following UCLA’s win over Boise State, Garbers announced he will return to the Bruins next season. Kelly was ecstatic.

“Ethan won the team over a long time ago,” Kelly said. “He’s been our starting quarterback; the only issue we’ve had is he has gotten banged up. He knows that he’s the starting quarterback here. I’ve got great faith in him. What we saw today is what we saw against Stanford and what we saw against USC.”