Wake Forest Athletics
Tom Garners FWAA All-America Honors
12/10/2021 2:00:00 PM | Football
The redshirt junior becomes the fifth Demon Deacon offensive player in the last four years to be named an All-American.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Wake Forest redshirt junior offensive lineman Zach Tom was named a Second Team All-American by the Football Writers Association of America, as announced Friday.
This comes on the heels of also being named a Second Team All-American by the Athletic on Wednesday. Tom earned First Team All-ACC honors from the league and associated press.
The Prairieville, La. native was also voted as the Jim Tatum Award winner given annually in memory of the late Jim Tatum to the top senior student-athlete among the league's football players. He was a semifinalist for the prestigious William V. Campbell Trophy this season.
This season, Tom has played more than 1,100 plays and has graded out at 94 percent for the season and has graded out above 90 percent in every game this year.
According to PFF, he has the second highest pass blocking grade at 91.1 percent of any FBS offensive lineman who has played over 25 snaps.
Over the course of his career, Tom has started 36 games in his career including starting in his last 35 games.
Tom was named ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week for the first time of his career following Wake Forest's win over Duke. During that game, he anchored the Wake Forest offensive line that tallied 677 yards, the second-highest total in program history.
Overall for the season, Tom helped Wake Forest's offense rank fifth in the country in scoring offense (41.2), while ranking 12th in total offense (469.1). Additionally, the Demon Deacons are on pace to smash the program scoring mark as the Deacs more than a touchdown better than their record-setting pace a season ago of 36.0 points per game.
Heading into the 2021 season, Tom has played in 1,902 snaps and has given up just one sack while grading out at 92% overall and has only been called for three penalties.
The ACC's leading returner in pass block efficiency was recognized this preseason as an All-American by Phil Steele. Tom was also placed on the Outland Trophy Preseason Watch List, given to the best interior lineman in the country.
Since arriving on campus ahead of the 2017 season, the Demon Deacons have enjoyed a wealth of success. Tom has helped the Deacs reach a bowl game every year he has been on campus, extending the streak to a school record five consecutive seasons. The streak is also the third-longest active streak in the ACC.
