Dave Gallagher (American football)


David Dillon Gallagher is a former All-American defensive tackle who played for the University of Michigan Wolverines from 1971–1973 and in the National Football League from 1974-1979.

College career

The University of Michigan's Bentley Historical Library describes Gallagher's contributions as: "One of the finest defensive tackles ever to play at Michigan." In 1971, he was named to the sophomore All-American team. As a senior in 1973, he was a co-captain of the Michigan football team. He made 83 tackles in 1973 and 175 in his three years playing for Bo Schembechler's Wolverines. He was a consensus first-team All-American as a senior, was also selected twice to the All-Big Ten Academic squad, and was also a recipient of a National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame postgraduate scholarship.

Professional career

Gallagher was drafted in the first round of the 1974 NFL Draft and played five years in the NFL for the Chicago Bears, the New York Giants and Detroit Lions.

Honors

In 2005, Gallagher was selected as one of the 100 greatest Michigan football players of all time by the "Motown Sports Revival," ranking 65th on the all-time team.