Chris Galippo

Chris Galippo (born April 12, 1989) is a former American football linebacker. During his college years, he played for the University of Southern California. Galippo became the first defensive player to ever win the Pete Dawkins Trophy for being selected as the U.S. Army All-American Bowl's most valuable player.^[1] He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Indianapolis Colts in 2012.

High school career

Galippo played middle linebacker, running back and receiver at Servite High School in Anaheim, California, and was the 2005 Serra League co-defensive player of the year, as well as the Orange County Register Defensive Player of the Year. He was a 2005-2006 Unanimous Parade All-American, an ALL CIF-SS Division-1 first-team selection, and rated the #2 overall player in the United States by ESPN. Galippo finished with 161 tackles as a junior, a school record.^[2]

Along with USC, Galippo was recruited heavily by over 35 other top college football programs, including UCLA, Arizona State, Boston College, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Florida, and Ole Miss.

Galippo started 2007 by earning MVP honors at the nation's most recognized high school all-star game, the Army All-American Bowl. Galippo, who ended the game with more than a dozen tackles, led the West team to a 24-7 victory. Galippo's dominant performance came way of a variety of plays. The five-star linebacker, who had been labeled as the West's vocal leader throughout practices, started the game off with four tackles in the first quarter.

Making great reads, Galippo shot the gaps on several plays and never allowed the East offensive line to establish a running game up the middle. Galippo played middle linebacker at Servite High School and hopes to have a bright future playing in the middle when he arrives at USC. In fact, by the third quarter, Galippo had already racked up double digit tackles, including several signature tackles outside the hash mark.^[3]

College career

Galippo claimed that the excitement of the coaching staff was a major factor in his decision to choose USC. However his deciding factor was its location.^[4]

Galippo has a 3.5 GPA and plans to major in communications at USC, with a minor in business. Galippo grew up a huge Ken Norton Jr. fan, which aided strongly in his decision to attend USC. "I don't expect to redshirt," Galippo says. "I definitely believe I can crack that lineup."^[5]

Chris played in the first three games of the 2007 season, where he played on special teams and was a back-up at the linebacker position. He made two tackles against Washington State four tackles against Nebraska, and two against Idaho. In spite of playing the first three games, Galippo received a medical redshirt for the 2007 season. Recurring back problems since the beginning of fall camp influenced him to redshirt. He decided to redshirt and undergo surgery so that he would not have to deal with back problems in the future. Upon redshirting, he will remain with 4 years of eligibility.

In October 2009, he was named a midseason All-American by The Sporting News.^[6]

Professional career

Indianapolis Colts

On May 3, 2012, Galippo was signed by the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent.^[7] On July 10, 2012, he was waived by the Colts.

Fox Sports West and ABC

Chris has been a lead color analyst for the Fox Sports West Prep Zone High School football games of the week since 2012. He also appears as a guest analyst on the ABC post-game show SPORTSZONE hosted by Rob Fukuzaki.

References

External links

• Indianapolis Colts profile
• USC profile
• Profile at CBS Sports
• Profile at ESPN
• Profile at Yahoo Sports