By Jimmy Robertson
BLACKSBURG – If Nick Gallo needs any pointers on how to survive the final few days of Virginia Tech's preseason football practice and get himself on the field as a freshman, he only needs to reach out to arguably his closest friend and someone with firsthand knowledge of such a situation – his older brother, Eric.
Actually, he already has.
"His advice was just to take it day by day and do everything the coaches tell you and do it as hard as you can," Nick said. "Your technique doesn't have to be perfect once you're out there, but they're going to notice a guy that wants to be out there and gives it everything he's got."
Nick has been heeding big brother's advice, as the Hokies wind down preseason practices and put their full focus on preparations for Boston College, their season-opening opponent next Saturday evening. Much of the talk of the newcomers this August has centered on Keshawn King, Tayvion Robinson, and a couple of offensive linemen and defensive linemen. Yet Nick also has played his way into the discussions for playing time this fall.
That may surprise some people, but not Eric, who played at Tech from 2014-17, graduated in 2018 with a degree in finance, and now works for a company in Philadelphia. He, probably better than anyone else, knew his brother possessed the goods to get on the field early.
"I don't think it surprises me," Eric admitted. "I thought he could play and get on the field as a freshman. He wouldn't have gone there if he didn't think that … I think he's just at the tip of the iceberg. There's a lot more to come, but he also has a lot more to do."
Of course, Eric knows what it takes to get on the field as a freshman. He managed to get on the field as a true freshman in 2014 – a rarity for an offensive lineman – playing in three games and showing the potential that later blossomed into a three-year starter. He started at center his final three seasons and earned honorable mention All-ACC recognition as a senior.
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Most freshmen fail to understand what it takes to succeed early in their careers. They try to rely on the talent that made them high school superstars, but arriving to campus in fantastic shape helps and understanding the Hokies' playbook definitely gives one a leg up on the others.
Nick came in with a head start on both parts. Physically, he arrived at 240 pounds, but maybe more importantly, he and Eric studied the playbook and watched film leading up to his arrival. While Nick may not have known what to do on every play, he came in with a base understanding of the Hokies' concepts.
"It's starts with the playbook," Eric said. "Everything becomes much easier if you can keep yourself from having to think on your feet. And then showing up in the best shape of your life. Those two things make it so much easier."
Nick's signing with Tech this past December and his subsequent enrollment at the school this summer continued the football team's legacy of brothers playing for the program. Also on this year's squad is walk-on redshirt freshman offensive lineman Louis Mihota, the younger brother of recently departed defensive lineman Vinny Mihota.
Of all the things synonymous with Virginia Tech football – the Lunch Pail, Hokie stone, Skipper, etc. – the brothers legacy of playing at this school may be the most important. After all, does Kendall Fuller, an All-American, play at Tech if his three older brothers hadn't enjoyed a great experience in Blacksburg? What about Tremaine Edmunds, who followed in older brothers Trey's and Terrell's footsteps and became an All-American?
The family connections within the Tech program always have run deep. Either a son of a former player (e.g. Kyle Chung) or a brother of a former player has been on a Tech roster every year for the past 54 years – an astounding fact. Nick Gallo's letter-of-intent secured the 28th brother tandem to play for the Hokies since 1987.
"They mentioned that during the recruiting process," Nick said. "Coach Fuente made a good point during the recruiting process. There's a reason why there are so many sets of brothers [coming to Tech]. That's obviously a good thing because the older brother is telling the younger brother, 'Hey, it's a nice program. Don't be afraid to come here.' So that's pretty cool.
"I would say it speaks to the culture or environment of the program. I remember talking to Coach [Frank] Beamer about all the brothers, and I was just a kid when Eric was getting recruited, but it's funny to see that I'm actually here now."
Nick first met Beamer when the latter met with Eric and his family and offered Eric a scholarship. At the time, he jokingly pointed out to a 13-year-old Nick that he often signed brothers of former players, too.
Roughly five years later, Fuente continued that philosophy by signing Gallo, who chose Tech over Maryland, Duke and North Carolina. The Terps thought they had the inside track because the oldest Gallo brother, P.J., played in College Park, Maryland and that resides closer to the family's Richboro, Pennsylvania home, but Nick's visits to Blacksburg to watch Eric won him over.
"Tech was the first Power 5 school to offer," Nick said. "Every offer from there, I would filter through the eyes of comparing it to Virginia Tech, and I really didn't feel like any other school came close to making me feel as comfortable as I did here."
"I never narrowed his vision," Eric said. "I told him to explore his options and see what every school had to offer.
"I always thought he'd come to play at Virginia Tech. Every time he went on a visit, and I'd asked him how it went, he'd say, 'It was good, but not as good as Virginia Tech.' So I thought he would come, but I knew he was doing his due diligence."
Of course, these days, Nick possesses little time to reminisce over the recruiting process, or dive deep into the Hokies' history with brothers. He is a teenager trying to earn some playing time in the Hokies' season opener Friday at Boston College.
At 6-foot-3, 240, Nick brings the size, and he came to Tech in great shape. That, and his ability to digest all that the staff requires of its tight ends – thanks to those tutorial sessions with Eric – puts him in position for possible playing time against the Eagles.
"I hate to say anything, but we're telling him he better be ready to play, so there's a good chance you'll see him and see him possibly game one, too," Tech tight ends coach James Shibest said. "If we're playing two tight ends more –I don't know if we're going to do that all the time – we're definitely going to need the bodies in there. As far as intelligence, he'll definitely be able to do that and physically, too. He came in in good shape and strong and all those things you need also."
"I'm just trying to basically go practice by practice," Nick said. "There is a lot of stuff coming in, and I just have to focus on understanding what I'm supposed to do on every play."
That's a heady approach to take, but one not surprising coming from him. His two older brothers hold degrees and his sister is working on one from Penn State. This family's talents certainly extend beyond any playing field.
Any family reunions this fall, though, will take place in Blacksburg, where Nick Gallo has continued the legacy of brothers at Virginia Tech – something in which they all take pride.
"It's just a family atmosphere there," Eric said. "A lot of it has to do with how the team sits within the university and the university sits within the town of Blacksburg and how all entities cooperate together. It's just a very welcoming place. It makes for a perfect fit."Gallery: (8/24/2019) 2019 FOOTBALL FALL PRACTICE 20