Remembering Floyd E. Garis
- Yen Ho
- Jun 16
- 5 min read
On June 8, 2026, long-time Wissahickon track and field coach Floyd E. Garis (1930-2026) passed away at the Spring House Estate. My only connection with him was during my high school years when I was on the girls' track and field team. Even though I didn't have much involvement with the team, I remembered how much everyone talked about Floyd. The only time I interacted with him was on his birthday in 2012 at the Spring House Estates with a few of my teammates.
As a dedication to his life and success, I decided to research and write about his life here. Floyd was a great man. A great coach. A great mentor to everyone.
Early Years
Floyd grew up in the Greater Philadelphia area, and attended high school in Willow Grove where he played many sports like football, basketball, baseball, and track and field. His love for sports continued at the East Stroudsburg State Teachers College (now named the East Stroudsburg University) with a four year hitch in the Navy interrupting his college career. He played varsity football, but was unable to participate in track due to spring football drills. But that didn't stop Floyd from pursuing track later in his life.
After graduating in 1956, Floyd was hired as an assistant football coach at Darby-Colwyn High School and head track and field coach. During his tenure, he mentored high school track star Daniel Maloney.
"There's no doubt that Maloney would win any low hurdles race he has to enter around here. But Dan would rather run against a top sprinter like [William Muehsam] of Ridley or [Albert] Costa of Interboro so that he will have more competition. He always places the good of the team above his own records."
- Floyd Garis on Dan Maloney, May 15, 1957
Floyd found a new school at the Lansdowne-Aldan High School in 1960, working in the same position he was from Darby. He continued to find greatness in his athletes, and found another track and field star at Lansdowne-Aldan with David Hocking.
Fun Fact # 1: In 1982, both Darby-Colwyn and Lansdowne-Aldan merged together that became known today as Penn Wood High School.
A Legendary Coach Comes to Wissahickon
In 1962, Floyd left Lansdowne-Aldan to continue being the head coach of Wissahickon High School's track and field team. It took many years for Wissahickon to rebuild and reach the top since Floyd joined the team, but he did no give up on his team. With hard work and dedication, Floyd lead his team to their very first District One title on May 20, 1967. His star during that time was Bill Scott. He and his teammates (Jim Swartz, Jim White, and Charles White) were PIAA State Champions that same year.
"Some coaches and teams get up for earlier meets. We (Wissahickon) have been looking forward all season to winning the State Championship."
- Floyd Garis on how his team won the District 1 title, May 22, 1967
"... Garis has his boys see the importance of winning in District competition. The Trojan mentor feels his trackmen haven't quite hit their peak, which the hopes will come this Saturday. The rest of the Bux-Mont league's hopes must rest with Garis' boys too."
- The Daily Intelligencer, May 22, 1967
Over the next couple of years, Floyd continued to lead his team in dominance during the 1970s all the way to the present day. During Floyd's tenure, his team won...
PIAA State Championship (1967, 1972, and 1982 (both indoor and outdoor track))
District One title (1967, 1968, 1972, 1982, and 1983)
There were also 17 individuals on his team who were PIAA State Champions and 35 State Medalists. Floyd continued coaching the team until 1986 when he retired from the Wissahickon School District. He then returned to Wissahickon in 1992 as an assistant coach to help the jumpers, hurdlers, throwers and pole vaulters on both the boys and girls' teams.
His assistant coach at the time was Bill Gallagher, who was hired back in 1969. He took over head coach duties after Floyd's retirement. He is currently a coach for the boys' cross country and indoor track teams at Wissahickon.
Fun Fact # 2: One of the 1972 members is currently the head coach for the boys' indoor and outdoor track teams. His name is Don Betterly.
"The whole tradition is there. The kids pick up on that. We’ve always had that continuity with our coaching staff and that is really important. It’s the major reason for our success. I’ve had some great distance runners in the past, and that is why I returned to coaching in the spring. I felt obligated to help these runners continue to improve."
- Bill Gallagher (2006)
"It was a good fit when I first started, I was young and enthusiastic. I started working with the sprinters and have been doing it ever since. When Bill (Gallagher) retired to spend more time with his children in 1995, I took over the program. I feel privileged to have Bill and Floyd on my staff, and it is nice for them because they are assistants and they don’t have to worry about the paperwork, uniforms, busses and all the other non-sense. They just concentrate on coaching, and let me take care of everything else. I’m just honored to have them here with me."
- Don Betterly (2006)
Floyd's memorable season as head coach was the 1982 season with star runners Scott Landis, Steve Griffiths, Keith Ryales and Ken Lowry. They held the national record of 7:36.24 in the 3200m relay race and won the PIAA State Championship.
Fun Fact # 3: Scott Landis was my 7th grade science teacher at Wissahickon Middle School. He was the one to convince me to join the girls' track team. He is currently the head coach of both the boys' soccer and track and field teams at the middle school.
Bibliography
"Championship History." PIAA District One. Accessed June 15, 2026. https://www.piaad1.org/sports/spring-sports/track-and-field-gb/championship-history/.
"Darby Sprinter Carries 94 Average, Sings, Plays Piano." Delaware County Daily Times. May 15, 1957. Page 21.
"Garis Gets Lans.-Aldan Track Job." Delaware County Daily Times. May 30, 1960. Page 19.
"Lansdowne-Aldan Calls Candidates." Delaware County Daily Times. August 16, 1962. Page 21.
"Lords Gear For Drills." Delaware County Daily Times. August 15, 1961. Page 13.
"Men Compete In Race." Temple Digital Collections. Accessed June 15, 2026. https://digital.library.temple.edu/digital/collection/p15037coll3/id/89575/.
"So What Happened At The Districts?" The Daily Intelligencer. May 22, 1967. Page 4.
Smith, Jeff. "Coaching experience abounds at Wissahickon." The Reporter. Last modified September 24, 2021. https://www.thereporteronline.com/2006/04/18/coaching-experience-abounds-at-wissahickon/?clearUserState=true.
"Stroudsburg High Releases 20-Game Court Schedule." The Pocono Record. November 11, 1955. Page 26.
"Willow Grove To Play Here." The Times Leader. December 19, 1947. Page 35.
"Wissahickon Track & Field." Wissahickon Track & Field. Accessed June 15, 2026. http://wissahickontrackandfield.com/.
Comments