Thomas Michael Zbikowski (born May 22, 1985) is a former American football safety. He is also a professional boxer and a

firefighter A firefighter is a first responder and rescuer extensively trained in firefighting, primarily to extinguish hazardous fires that threaten life, property, and the environment as well as to rescue people and in some cases or jurisdictions also ...

. He was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the third round (86th overall) of the

2008 NFL Draft The 2008 NFL Draft was the 73rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 26 and April 27, ...

. He earned All-American honors playing

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

for the University of Notre Dame from 2003 to 2007. Zbikowski also played for the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

and

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

Early years

Thomas Michael Zbikowski was born on May 22, 1985, in Park Ridge, Illinois, the youngest of four children born to Edmund Richard Zbikowski and Susan Lois (née Schatz) Zbikowski. His siblings are Kristen and Edmund Joseph "E.J.". He is of Polish descent on his father's side of the family and of German descent on his mother's side of the family. He grew up in

Arlington Heights, Illinois Arlington Heights is a municipality in Cook County with a small portion in Lake County in the U.S. state of Illinois. A suburb of Chicago, it lies about northwest of the city's downtown. Per the 2020 Census, the population was 77,676. Per the ...

. He attended Greenbrier Elementary School and Thomas Middle School in

and then high school at

Buffalo Grove High School Buffalo Grove High School (BGHS) is a public high school located in Buffalo Grove, Illinois, a northwest suburb of Chicago. It is one of six four-year comprehensive high schools in Township High School District 214, serving portions of the village ...

in Buffalo Grove, Illinois. He graduated from Buffalo Grove in 2003. He played youth football with the Buffalo Grove Bills and the Bensenville Bandits during elementary and middle school. At Buffalo Grove, he played quarterback where he set the school records in scoring (202 total points), and rushing (2357 yards, 7.4 average, 32 tds) before becoming a defensive back as well.

College career

Zbikowski played college football at

Notre Dame Notre Dame, French for "Our Lady", a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, most commonly refers to: * Notre-Dame de Paris, a cathedral in Paris, France * University of Notre Dame, a university in Indiana, United States ** Notre Dame Fighting Irish, th ...

. He made his debut as a sophomore in 2004, appearing in all 12 games and finished fourth best on the team with 70 total tackles (37 solo, 33 assisted) and two forced fumbles. He was named Walter Camp Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 19 following his performance at

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...

as he had a team-high nine tackles, forced a fumble and returned it for a 75-yard TD and recorded his first career interception. Zbikowski broke out as one of college football's best utility players during his junior season, excelling as a safety and a return man. Zbikowski accounted for four touchdowns (two interception returns and two punt returns) in 12 games played. He finished fourth on the team with 71 total tackles and led the defense with five interceptions while leading the Irish to the Fiesta Bowl. Following the seasons, Zbikowski earned Third-Team Associated Press All-America honors. He served as 2006 team captain alongside Brady Quinn and Travis Thomas and was selected to the second-team All-American squad by the Walter Camp Football Foundation after helping the Irish earn a bid in the

Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed onl ...

. Zbikowski was also named a third-team All-American by the Associated Press and was a semi-finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award, presented annually to the nation's best defensive back. He ended the year with 79 tackles, recovered a fumble for a touchdown against

Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campu ...

, and recorded his third career punt return touchdown with 52-yard return against North Carolina. Zbikowski returned to Notre Dame for his fifth year in 2007, recording a career-high 80 total tackles with a pair of interceptions and fumble recoveries. He continued to shine as a return man, racking up 234 return yards on punts. He graduated in May with degrees in sociology and computer applications.

Professional career

Baltimore Ravens

Zbikowski was selected with the 86th overall pick in the third round of the

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

NFL Draft by the Baltimore Ravens. He made the team and played four seasons for Baltimore as a defensive back and kick returner. He appeared in 56 games for the Ravens, including 14 starts as a safety. He made his professional debut on September 7 against the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...

, posting his first career tackle on special teams during a 17-10 win. He had two interceptions in 2009, and helped as a returner. He declared free agency after the 2011 season. Tom Zbikowski Ravens

Indianapolis Colts

Zbikowski signed with the

on March 16, 2012. He was the Colts' regular starting

strong safety Safety is a position in gridiron football on the defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free safety and the strong safety. Their dut ...

until he was injured during the 12th game of the season, missing the rest of the regular season. He did return for a Wild Card playoff game. The Colts lost that game 24-9 to Zbikowski's old team, the Baltimore Ravens. Indianapolis released him on March 15, 2013.

Chicago Bears

On March 23, 2013, Zbikowski was signed by the

to a one-year deal worth $715,000, but was released on August 25 during training camp.

Free agency and Retirement

On September 10, 2013, Zbikowski was suspended by the National Football League for four games for violating the league's performance-enhancing drug policy. He later stated that the banned substance was a diuretic he took to lose weight. In November 2013, he told David Haugh of the ''

Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...

'': "I don't want that label of a guy who took a

PED Peds are aggregates of soil particles formed as a result of pedogenic processes; this natural organization of particles forms discrete units separated by pores or voids. The term is generally used for macroscopic (visible; i.e. greater than 1 mm i ...

because as much as I'm a hustler, I don't like cheating, I never even thought about that. I don't take protein shakes. I drink coffee, green tea and eat food. That's what I've done my whole life.'' The suspension proved to be a moot point because Zbikowski retired from the NFL. He explained, "Football got old to me…I enjoyed my first two years in the NFL because it was a challenge. I was playing with the best. But after a while you don't care whether you win or lose because you're still getting a paycheck. I enjoyed high school and college much more." In 2015, Zbikowski completed fire academy training and joined the

Chicago Fire Department The Chicago Fire Department (CFD) provides fire suppression, rescue services, Hazardous Materials Response services and emergency medical response services to the city of Chicago, Illinois, United States, under the jurisdiction of the Mayor of Chi ...

. He is no longer a member of the Fire Department as of 2019.

Boxing

Zbikowski has sporadically pursued a career as a professional boxer since 2006, mostly in the cruiserweight division. He has won all 8 of his official bouts, 5 by knockout, all against little-known opponents. On June 10, 2006, while still in college, Zbikowski made his professional boxing debut at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

in New York City, beating his opponent, Robert Bell of Akron, Ohio, by

TKO TKO may refer to: Sports * Technical knockout, a professional fighting term * Total Knock Out, a professional wrestling move Music Artists * TKO (band), a rock band from Seattle, Washington * TKO, a pop group led by Katie White Albums * ''TKO ...

within 49.0 seconds of the first round. The fight was compliant with NCAA guidelines. Bell, who is an Ohio State fan, wore an

Ohio State football The Ohio State Buckeyes football team competes as part of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, representing Ohio State University in the East Division of the Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the ...

jersey into the ring. Zbikowski boxed a three-round exhibition fight against Ryan St. Germain on March 2, 2007 at the

Century Center The Century Center Convention Center, designed by architects Philip Johnson and John Burgee, broke construction in 1974 and opened in 1977, has been managed by SMG since July, 2013. The center, built on the banks of the West Race canal, overloo ...

in South Bend, Indiana. After the

2008 NFL season The 2008 NFL season was the 89th regular season of the National Football League, themed with the slogan "Believe in Now." Super Bowl XLIII, the league's championship game, was at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, on February 1, 2009, w ...

he decided to put his boxing career on hold to focus on football. On March 12, 2011, Zbikowski returned to the ring for the first time since 2007, taking on 1-2 35-year-old Richard Bryant in Las Vegas, amidst ongoing NFL labor contract discord. Zbikowski won by TKO after 1 minute 45 seconds in the first round of the scheduled four-round fight. After that, he trained under the instruction of his new trainer Emanuel Steward, an inductee both of the International Boxing Hall of Fame and the World Boxing Hall of Fame, and won via a unanimous decision at the Boardwalk Hall in

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497.

on March 26, 2011 to extend his winning streak to three in a row. He extended his win streak to 4-0 in a first-round knock out against Blake Warner at the Winstar Casino in Thackerville, Okla. on April 23, 2011. After testing positive for a substance in marijuana, he was suspended. After taking a second test, his suspension was lifted. Bob Arum said, "I think that the commission did the right thing by lifting the suspension... The tests that were taken were very unreliable. Now Tommy has taken a proper test, and as a result, you know that he's clean. So they did the right thing." Zbikowski returned to the ring again in 2016 and won all three of his fights that year. His last fight was on October 17, 2017, when he defeated a boxer named Martez Williamson who was ranked 639th in the world at the time, and whose won-lost record was 3-20 after the bout.

Professional boxing record

, style="text-align:center;" colspan="8", 7 Wins (4 knockouts), 0 Losses 0 Draws 0 No Contest'

, - , align=center style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Res. , align=center style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Record , align=center style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Opponent , align=center style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Type , align=center style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Rd., Time , align=center style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Date , align=center style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Location , align=center style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3", Notes , -align=center , Win, , 8-0 , , align=left, Martez Williamson , , , , align=left, , align=left, , -align=center , Win, , 7-0 , , align=left, Raymond Gray , , , , align=left, , align=left, http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/tommy-z-wins-by-disqualification-342632 , -align=center , Win, , 6-0 , , align=left, Albert Harkins , , , , align=left, , align=left, , -align=center , Win, , 5-0 , , align=left, Keith Jackson , , , , align=left, , align=left, , -align=center , Win, , 4-0 , , align=left, Blake Warner , , , , align=left, , align=left, , -align=center , Win, , 3-0 , , align=left, Caleb Grummet , , , , align=left, , align=left, , -align=center , Win, , 2-0 , , align=left, Richard Bryant , , , , align=left, , align=left, , -align=center , Win, , 1-0 , , align=left, Robert Bell , , , , align=left, , align=left, , -align=center

References

External links

* * *
Notre Dame Fighting Irish bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zbikowski, Tom 1985 births Living people Boxers from Chicago Sportspeople from Park Ridge, Illinois People from Arlington Heights, Illinois American people of Polish descent American people of German descent American football safeties American football return specialists Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players Baltimore Ravens players Indianapolis Colts players Chicago Bears players Players of American football from Chicago American male boxers American firefighters