SoCal TE gets first offer
Tight end Tommy Gallarda (6-5, 215, 4.8) from Brea (Calif.) Brea Olinda has received his first D-I offer after a strong showing at a camp. The hard working Gallarda is seeing his efforts pay off.
"The University of Tulsa has been recruiting me pretty heavily over the past several months and in the spring indicated they wanted to see me with some additional weight," Gallarda said. They also asked if I would come back to Tulsa for a camp and I did. My Dad and I were there for several days."
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"The Camp went well with over 160 athletes who were primarily from the Midwest and Texas," Gallarda said. "I was the only one from California."
"At the end of the day, Coach (Steve) Kragthorpe the Head Coach and the tight end Coach, (Matt) Wells asked if my Dad and I could meet with them," Gallarda said. "We met and Coach Kragthorpe offered me a scholarship as a tight end."
"They both commented that I looked thicker than I did in the spring and that I was physical with the linebackers off the line during the one-on-one drills," Gallarda said. "They told me that I ran disciplined routes and they look to me to spread the field."
"I felt the camp was successful with or without the scholarship offer," Gallarda said. "I had learned elements to the tight end position that I am bringing back to my team."
"I was impressed with the coaches, particularly Head Coach Kragthorpe and Tight Ends' Coach Matt Wells," Gallarda said. "They are great coaches and take a personal interest in players."
"The scholarship offer means a lot to me as it shows that I am able to play at the D-I level," Gallarda said. "I will continue to train for the upcoming season."
"The discipline has paid off as the weight gain is muscle and this allowed me to be more physical with the Linebackers at Tulsa."
Gallarda was an all-league selection in 2004 after catching 24 passes for 450 yards and four touchdowns.
Gallarda is working on improving his skills with Rick Hagehorn who has an excellent reputation in his field and an excellent track record helping athletes improve their speed and former all-pro tight end David Hill who played for the Detroit Lions and the Los Angeles Rams.
Hagehorn has worked with former Brea Olinda star and now Stanford Cardinal Evan Moore. Hagehorn feels that Gallarda could end up splitting out wide or be used as a H-Back.
Arizona State, Oregon, Stanford, and Cal are also showing interest in Gallarda and are in the mix.