 Gallagher (No. 71) and Carl Russ loom over an opposing QB, 1973 | |||||||||
| No. 76, 71 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Defensive tackle | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1952-01-02)January 2, 1952 Piqua, Ohio, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died | January 2, 2025(2025-01-02) (aged 73) Columbus, Indiana, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||
| Weight | 256 lb (116 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Piqua (OH) | ||||||||
| College | Michigan | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1974: 1st round, 20th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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David Dillon Gallagher (January 2, 1952 – January 20, 2025) was an American former professionalfootball player who was adefensive tackle in theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football for theMichigan Wolverines, earning consensusAll-American honors in 1973. He played in the NFL from 1974 to 1979.
TheUniversity of Michigan'sBentley Historical Library describes Gallagher's contributions as: "One of the finest defensive tackles ever to play at Michigan."[1] 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 83tackles in 1973 and 175 in his three years playing forBo 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 aNational Football Foundation andCollege Football Hall of Famepostgraduatescholarship.
Gallagher was selected in the first round of the1974 NFL draft. He had planned to attend medical school, but decided to forgo that to play professional football.[2]
He played five years in the NFL for theChicago Bears (1974), theNew York Giants (1975–1976). He retired from professional football in 1976 and entered medical school. However, in 1978, he returned to professional football.[3] He played for theDetroit Lions in 1978 and 1979.[4]
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.[5]
Michigan Wolverines Football All-Americans