When the men's lacrosse team had a coaching vacancy after assistant Todd Cavallaro bolted for the head job at Franklin & Marshall, Penn decided to keep it in the family - literally.
Cavallaro's replacement was Matt Heiderman, former Georgetown standout and brother to Penn junior midfielder Garvey.
"I said something to him about how our assistant coach was leaving," Garvey said. "And he kind of jokingly said something to me about possibly applying for the job.
"He thought about it and considered it and asked me if I would have a problem with it. I said I would not, so he pursued it further from there."
Head coach Brian Voelker insists that Matt's relationship to Garvey was as much a pro as a con when considering him for the job.
The positives included his strong relationship with the family and knowledge of the hard-working attitude the Heiderman parents instill in their children.
On the other hand, Voelker worried that the brothers would not be able to separate their personal and lacrosse relationships.
Thus far, however, there do not seem to be any signs of conflict.
That may be because Matt works primarily with the defense, while Garvey is an attacking midfielder. While neither brother thinks that working together would be an issue, Matt recognizes that others may view it as a "conflict of interest." Thus, their on-field interaction is kept to a minimum.
"There are some days that we don't even talk to each other at all from the beginning of practice to the end of it," Garvey noted.
That, however, is unusual for the pair. Separated by only two years, the brothers are very close. Their lacrosse relationship began at a young age, when Matt often had to guard his sibling.
Each acknowledged that Matt, despite being three inches shorter, was the "more intense" of the two. He seized many opportunities to abuse his brother on the playing field.
"I used to beat the hell out of him in practice," he said. "But I like to think it made us both a lot better."
All in all, though, they carried out more of their rivalry on the hardwood. According to Garvey, no matter whom they began the game guarding, they always seemed to gravitate toward each other.
In high school, their father, Tommy, coached them in basketball, and Garvey says that it acclimated him to having a family member as a coach.
With nine points on the year, Garvey is not be enjoying the same on-field success as he did last year. But with his brother on the sideline, he may be appreciating it more.
"It's always fun to enjoy a big part of your life with siblings," he said. "And [Penn lacrosse] is definitely a big part of my life."
