By David A. F. Sweet
It’s spring break at the University of Michigan, a time for most students to flee the grey Ann Arbor sky and head to Florida, to Mexico – anywhere warm.
Not Tom Brady. He stayed on campus to train for the NCAA National Championships, an indoor track and field championship that just wrapped up in Boston. Given where he was two years ago, he felt fortunate to be able to compete in the event at all.
Tom Brady — a stellar runner both outdoors and indoors for the University of Michigan — qualified for the Olympic Trials in June. Courtesy of University of Michigan Photography.
A self-described driven runner who embraces risks, Brady noted that led to a stress fracture in his sacrum his junior year, knocking him out of competitions for more than two months in the fall of 2022. That winter, he suffered from ulcerative colitis, derailing his indoor track season, while a bout with Covid shortened his outdoor campaign. To top it off, he partially tore a calf muscle his senior year.
Given those injuries and illnesses, few could have expected how far the native of Park Ridge has bounced back. Now a graduate student who is chasing a master’s degree in management at Michigan, he earned All-America honors for his 27th-place finish (29:37.1) at the 2023 Cross Country NCAA Championships in November. His performance helped the Wolverines finish 19th in the country (10 spots better than 2022). After he led Michigan to a second-place finish in the Big Ten Cross Country Championships earlier in the fall, he earned the conference’s Cross Country Athlete of the Year award.
“I had several setbacks in the past, but with diligent rehab and training, I was able to come out stronger on the other end,” Brady noted. “Part of what I love about running is you get out of it what you put into it. Anytime I do a hard workout, I know I’ll get more strength in a race. You can work hard to be successful, and I think that’s awesome.”
Tom Brady led Michigan to a second-place finish in the Big Ten Cross Country Championships. Courtesy of University of Michigan Photography.
Aside from the aforementioned honors, Brady has also become the school record holder in the indoor 5000 meters, notching a time of 13:24.16. That’s even more significant to him than his other feats. Why?
“When I started at Michigan, our school record seemed unattainable,” he explained. “But the following year, my teammate Devin Meyrer beat it and qualified for Nationals. I made it my goal to perform as well as he did someday, so to break his record and qualify for Indoor Nationals was a huge moment for me. Receiving a message from him showing his support meant a lot because he is a huge reason I’ve been able to improve in the sport.”
Given his success, what keeps him motivated?
“I’ve always been a competitive person. The biggest motivator is to beat the guy next to me,” he said. “I think of it as a fight I have to survive. When I want to just slow down, I remind myself how awesome it is to push yourself.”
That’s what happened during the 2023 Nationals in Charlottesville, Va. After one kilometer of the 10k race, Brady – who wanted to be Top 40 to earn All-America honors – was 73rd. He didn’t panic, and he moved up to 45th halfway through the race. But then, after nine kilometers, he started cramping.
“I thought, ‘This is the last race of the year. I’m going to regret it if I don’t give it everything. The cramp will go away right when I’m done.’”
Brady sprinted the last kilometer and passed seven competitors. He was the third-fastest runner of anyone in the nation during that final stretch.
As you might expect, Brady gets a number of comments about his name. You see, there once was another Tom Brady on campus, who led the Wolverines to a 20-5 record during his final two years before transforming into a superstar with the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But unlike today’s Tom Brady, the older one never received All-America honors while playing in Ann Arbor.
“I get a fair bit of jokes my way for being Tom Brady at the University of Michigan, but I find the jokes pretty funny,” he said. “A few times a week people ask me if my name is actually Tom Brady or if I am somehow related to him. I enjoy it because it’s a rather unique situation and people seem to get a kick out of it. Besides, it’s not bad to be compared to a Michigan legend while still being recognized for my own achievements.”
Growing up, Brady played various sports in Park Ridge, such as football, baseball, basketball, and soccer. He competed in cross country during middle school and would occasionally run 5k road races with his mother, Judy.
“Going into high school, she thought I would really excel at running and because it was something I enjoyed,” Brady said. “I ended up giving it a try.” A strong freshman year propelled him to four years of success, enough to earn a spot at Michigan.
“I get a fair bit of jokes my way for being Tom Brady at the University of Michigan, but I find the jokes pretty funny,” the standout runner said.
Once he earns his master’s degree in May (his second; the first was in computer science) Brady hopes to procure a software engineering job in Chicago. And just because he won’t be competing in NCAA meets doesn’t mean he’ll pack away his shoes.
“I will likely begin to do marathons, hopefully competitively, and keep training at a pretty high level,” Brayd said. “I love running, and I don’t want to give it up.”
Unsung Gems Columnist David A. F. Sweet can be reached at dafsweet@aol.com.
