Tom Harbert started wrestling at Wilkinsburg High School, where he was a Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League Section 2 wrestling champion.

His college wrestling was done at Shippensburg University where he was a four-year letter winner and won a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference championship.

He later competed in the U.S. Olympic Trials and in 1983 and he won a U.S. Masters wrestling championship at the University of Pennsylvania.

For 28 years Tom served as a head wrestling coach.

He coached 20 years at Latrobe High School and compiled a record of 202-87·5 and was named WPIAL Section 1 Coach of the Year seven times.

Tom left Latrobe to become head wrestling coach at St. Vincent College, a position he held for eight years.

Overall, Tom has served St Vincent College for more than three decades as a coach for the cross country, lacrosse and wrestling programs.

During this time he also found time to officiate and worked 31 years as a 31-year Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association wrestling official.

He was the director of many camps including the Top-of-the-Mountain Wrestling Camp which he directed and owned.

Tom was inducted into the Southeastern Pennsylvania Hall of Fame in 2001 and into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame in 2008.