ROBERT GALLERY
University of Iowa
Offensive Tackle, 2000-03
In keeping with the ethos of an offensive lineman, Robert Gallery was all business, all the time. He was always focused on the next snap, the next practice, the next opponent — rarely giving himself much time for reflection.
But being a decade removed from his playing career has allowed for some room to soak in those special moments, such as when he learned that he was making the College Football Hall of Fame, becoming just the 11th former Iowa player to earn the honor.
"Overwhelming," Gallery said of the news. "It set me back a little bit. As you get older and farther way from your career, these things seem to mean a lot more because you have time to really think about what they mean."
Gallery was a Manchester, Iowa kid who rarely doubted that his future would take him to Iowa City. His older brother Nick was a four-year punter for the Hawkeyes who would go on to play in the NFL, and trips to campus to visit Nick and standout teammates such as Tim Dwight and Jared DeVries had sold Robert early on.
"This honor brought back a lot of memories," Gallery said. "Now that I am done, it's nice to be able to think of what it really means for me. It was the days and weeks afterward that were more overwhelming for me than the initial news, because you get the numbers of how few people are in the Hall of Fame to begin with, and then all the (information) from Iowa came, the very few number of guys who have ever played at Iowa and other things that come with it."
Gallery's individual accolades speak for themselves — a 2003 unanimous First Team All-American who also won the Outland Trophy, in addition to becoming a three-time First Team All-Big Ten tackle and a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree. The Hawkeyes' transformation as a program, however, is what stands out the most.
Coach Kirk Ferentz's first season in 1999 was a forgettable 1-10 campaign. Gallery came aboard in 2000 and played in the final six games of his freshman year, but Iowa went just 3-9 that year. In Gallery's final three seasons, the Hawkeyes went 28-10, 17-7 in Big Ten play and won two bowl games, finishing No. 8 in the final AP poll in 2002 and '03. They shared the Big Ten title in 2002, going 8-0 in conference play.
"We were not good those first couple of years," Gallery said. "Nobody in our class, and typically from Iowa, is super highly recruited. I don't think they gave star (ratings) back then, but we were a bunch of hungry guys that just came in and worked. I was 230 pounds when I showed up on campus. And to build over the years — it's not an instant success — but to build up that program and see what it's done and to stay consistent since then is the biggest accomplishment when I look back. That means a lot."
Gallery protected the blind side for quarterback
Brad Banks, who passed for an impressive 2,573 yards and 26 touchdowns as the Davey O'Brien winner and Heisman Trophy runner-up in 2002 while he opened holes for running backs
Fred Russell and
Jermelle Lewis, who combined for 1,937 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns. By the time Gallery finished his tenure in Iowa City, he was 325-lbs, which combined with his speed and agility made him a coveted NFL prospect.
The Raiders selected him as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft. He would start 103 of the 104 games in which he played for the Raiders and Seahawks. He was given the NFL's Ed Block Courage Award in 2010. He now lives in Lake Tahoe with his wife — former Hawkeyes basketball player Becca McCann — and their three children.
"Goodness, I think my best memory was the grind of helping build a program and coming in there and being a nobody and just grinding," Gallery said. "I owe a lot to those coaches. They knew how to work with guys and develop guys. And being around the locker room was fun. When you get into a pro career, there's pressure and stresses, and I don't remember those in college. I just remember it being fun. Even during the tough times, college football was fun.
"Luckily there was no social media, but the workday in and day out, the pleasure of working with the guys; I still talk with a lot of those guys. And having those successes and playing in the Orange Bowl and having some very successful seasons is a huge memory for me."
UP CLOSE:
- Named a unanimous First Team All-American and claimed the Outland Trophy as the nation's best interior lineman in 2003.
- Anchored an offensive, which led the conference in scoring in back-to-back years, averaging 32.6 points per game in 2001 and 37.2 in 2002.
- A three-time All-Big Ten selection, helping the Hawkeyes claim their first Big Ten title in more than a decade and the school's first back-to-back top ten finishes since the 1950s.
- Played for head coach Kirk Ferentz.
- Becomes the 11th Iowa player to enter the College Football Hall of Fame.
