Zach Gallup - Football

Zach Gallup is a captain for the 2011 Carnegie Mellon football team. Elsa is an information systems major and will graduate in May.

While trying to determine what college I wanted to attend senior year of high school, academics were always a very important factor to me. I knew I would never play in the NFL, but the opportunity to play college football was something I had wanted to do since I was little. Having grown up in a small town and playing sports with the same small group of guys my entire life, I was a little bit leery coming into college and didn’t quite know what to expect. I was greatly surprised to discover that I was on a team with a great group of guys and a freshman class that was full of people who I know will be my lifelong friends.

The opportunities I’ve received at Carnegie Mellon both athletically and academically have truly been amazing. Not only have I had the opportunity to play with a great group of men, I’ve been able to do so at a high level of Division III football. Carnegie Mellon has also given me the ability to compete around the country with games at Washington University in St. Louis, Chicago University and Catholic University in Washington D.C. The coaching staff and athletic department have allowed me to grow as an athlete and as a person with opportunities to work with some of the leading sports psychologists in the industry to improve my leadership abilities.

Academically, Carnegie Mellon is an extremely unique and challenging place that has allowed me to get a degree in Information Systems from a world class university. I have had the opportunity to be surrounded by driven and likeminded students in a challenging academic environment. Although it hasn’t always been easy, it has truly been a rewarding experience. Carnegie Mellon has provided me with great friends and teammates, great athletics, and world class academics. It is because of all of these things that I can truly say I’m proud to be a Tartan.