Football, Baseball
Favorite athlete: Conor McGregor
Favorite team: 76ers
Favorite memory competing in sports: Making district playoffs as senior
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: Watching a student streak during the CR North game
Music on mobile device: All genres
Future plans: Attend Virginia Tech
Words to live by: “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit.” –Aristotle
One goal before turning 30: Graduate college
One thing people don’t know about me: I love to golf.
By Ed Morrone
In the sporting world, the phrase “football family” gets tossed around so much that it almost becomes an eye roll of a cliché.
But make no mistake about it, Nick Gallo really comes from a football family.
The Council Rock South senior, a tight end on the football team who also plays defense, is the youngest of four siblings. His father played football in high school and college, and Gallo’s older brothers, Eric and P.J., played collegiate ball at Virginia Tech and Maryland, respectively. Nick Gallo even has an older sister who was a cheerleader at South, so yes, the family lives and breathes football, and it was no surprise when Nick decided to follow in Eric’s footsteps by committing to play at Virginia Tech next fall.
“Growing up, we played anything we could get our hands on,” Nick said. “Playing against my older siblings gave me my competitive edge. My brothers especially, they taught me everything I know. One was an offensive lineman, so he taught me blocking; the other was a tight end, so he taught me how to catch the ball and run routes.
"It wasn’t just the skill set stuff, though; they taught me how to handle the recruiting process, how to work hard every day and how to maximize your potential to be the best you can be in order to play in college and use that as a vehicle to get an education.”
Unless they’re desperate, it’s rare for varsity football programs in the Suburban One League to carry freshmen. Some may dress for games, but few see significant action. That certainly wasn’t the case for Gallo, who was a mainstay for the South football program as soon as he stepped on campus.
“He wasn’t quite a starter freshman year, but he played a lot of downs,” South assistant football coach Tony Checchia said. “For us, we hardly bring freshmen up to the varsity level, but even then, Nick looked like a grown man. He comes from a pedigree, with his two brothers both serving as captains at the Division-I level. Nick had a lot of pressure to follow in their footsteps, but never once in four years was a moment too big for him.
“From freshman year, he’s been a two-way guy for us. On offense, he’s a complete tight end, and not just because of his size (6-foot-4, 230 lbs.). He’s polished as a route runner, and he’s mentally willing to be a blocker and mauler in the run game. From a football standpoint, he’s the complete package.”
What helped Gallo so much right off the bat was playing on a veteran, senior-laden team as a freshman. The Golden Hawks went 6-4 overall and 5-2 in SOL play Gallo’s freshman year, and while the team missed the playoffs, Gallo saw right away that he could be a contributor on a winning team.
“I remember that first year being a lot of fun,” he said. “There were so many talented seniors to look up to. I remember it being really fast, but I still got to play in the games. Then once I got to sophomore year, the game slowed down more, and I was a lot more comfortable.
“It’s been implanted in my mind since I was a little kid that I had to work hard every day. I knew there was always someone out there working just as hard as me, so when I went against these other kids, I knew I wouldn’t have to worry about technique or the heat of the moment, because I knew I had already put in the work.”
After his sophomore season, Gallo remained unsatisfied. Already an accomplished pass catcher at tight end, he refused to rest on his laurels; instead, he focused on becoming a vicious blocker so that South could add a fearsome rushing attack to its arsenal.
Checchia recalled a game during Gallo’s junior year where the coaching staff called for a passing play. The star player, however, had other ideas.
“Nick came up to me and (head coach) Vince (Bedesem) and said, ‘Let’s pound the run to my side,’” Checchia said. “Coach said OK, and the line just completely collapsed. It was the biggest hole I’ve ever seen, and that was such a cool moment for Nick and for me, just to see him show that meanness.
"He’s the nicest kid you’ll ever meet, but when we’re running the ball behind him, he’s a different kind of guy. Behind him, we’re going. And to me, it showed he was out here to do more than just run routes and catch passes.”
For Gallo, going the extra mile was just part of the job, and he understood that him doing more would only set a positive example for younger players.
“My biggest takeaway was that you always have to give relentless effort,” he said. “That’s something that carries over to offense, defense and special teams: give your best effort and work as hard as you can until the final whistle.”
During Gallo’s senior season that just wrapped up with a first-round loss to Truman in the 6A district playoffs, the Golden Hawks got back to their winning ways. The team posted a 6-4 record and 5-2 mark in league play, including handing Truman its only loss during the regular season. South also took down Central Bucks West in double overtime and took the district’s top team, North Penn, to double overtime before ultimately falling short. Gallo and company clinched his first-ever playoff berth in a victory over rival Council Rock North.
“Us as seniors and me individually, goals were set to get to the playoffs, which I think had only been done three times in school history,” Gallo said. “It’s definitely a big accomplishment. It definitely stinks it had to end so soon, but it was a big goal to check off. This senior class has been playing together since we were little kids, and I was just so proud at how we were able to compete in every single game we played.”
Even though Gallo’s high school football career is done, he still has South’s baseball season to look forward to. He plays first base, outfield and pitches, and said that he decided to stick with baseball even after his football career skyrocketed because the game has taught him many lessons that have helped him in his football development.
“It’s such an intriguing, difficult, great sport,” Gallo said of baseball. “I learned that it’s a sport of failure, one that teaches patience and how you have to work day in and day out since we had a game every day or every other day. Baseball really helped me in football, not just physically but mentally.”
Gallo has been in the varsity baseball lineup since midway through his freshman year.
"We called him up, and he had a very good freshman season," coach Ted Kirner said. "He kind of had an off sophomore year and then transitioned from the outfield with an opportunity to go to first base his junior season."
First base was a new position for Gallo, but he excelled.
"He's unmistakable with his size and then the athleticism to transition from the outfield to a very complex first base position - he did extremely well," Kirner said. "For a guy who isn't going to slip through lineups, he did very well offensively.
"In our last game of the year in a playoff game against Perk Valley, Nick hit the furthest ball I've ever seen a high school player hit in his last at-bat of his junior year, just a towering deep home run way over the left field fence.
"I can't say enough good things about him. He plays hard, he commands respect, his presence is felt everywhere. Being a comopetitor these days - in high school, it's not a given that they're competitors, and Nick gets it. He wants to compete, he welcomes competition, he wants to play against the best. He's a fantastic athlete with a tremendous up side in football. I'm really looking forward to his senior year."
All of Gallo’s older siblings majored in business in college, and he said he plans to do the same, even if he’s not exactly sure what specific field within business that he wants to focus on yet. He’s always enjoyed math and numbers more than anything else in school, and he knew almost instantly that Virginia Tech was the perfect fit for him, both athletically and academically.
When he’s not playing sports or staying on top of his schoolwork, Gallo said he enjoys spending time at his family’s beach house in North Wildwood. Additionally, he loves to be involved in the football program’s community service endeavors. Gallo specifically pointed out the work the team does with Athletes Helping Athletes, an organization his older sister was president of when she was a senior and Nick was a freshman.
“We have a football night, a carnival night, just things that help those kids feel like they’re out there playing on Friday night,” Gallo said of a program that connects special needs athletes to mainstream athletes. “You can see it makes them feel like a regular high school student. My sister taught me a lot about the program when I was younger and brought me along to a lot of events, and I just thought it was so cool how it helps those kids feel special.”
Many football players are done with the game once they finish high school. Obviously, Gallo is not one of those kids, as his best days are likely still ahead of him at Virginia Tech. That being said, he will miss everything about playing for Council Rock South. And how could he not? He was one of the team’s best players from the moment he stepped on to the field as a freshman, and he only got better from there.
Listening to his coach tell it, Gallo is much more than just a standout football player.
"Nick is as good of a person off the field as he is a player on the field," coach Vince Bedesem said. "To me, Nick is an All-State/All-American type of player.
"His leadership skills have been something we haven't seen in a while. He's a student of the game, and it's been a pleasure to coach him."
Gallo and his teammates created memories that will never fade, and they can look back on these four years and say they punctuated their careers with a rare playoff berth.
“Some of those senior season games were so fun to play in,” Gallo said. “Especially for me, considering I was out there on the field so much and involved in every play. Against CB West, we had our backs against the wall and blocked a kick to win in double overtime. Even though we lost to North Penn, that was such a big game in an incredible atmosphere, and it taught our team that no matter what happens the week before, we have to get right back to work and prepare for the next team.
“In those situations, the best can come out of people, and that’s what happened with our team. Having the opportunity to make the playoffs for the first time with our senior class … it’s really tough when it comes to an end, but overall I’m so proud of everyone.”
