'09 FL DT John Gallagher (Wake Forest Verbal)

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'09 FL DT John Gallagher



Defensive tackle
Ponte Vedra (FL) Nease

Ht: 6-foot-4
Wt: 252 lbs
Class: 2009 (High School)

NEASE PROSPECTS - CLASS OF 2009

Chose WF over Illinois and FSU.

YouTube - Nease Football - #90/70 DE/DT John...

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Stop if this sounds familiar: Nease football standout commits to Wake Forest.

After three Panthers signed with the Demon Deacons on Wednesday, a member of the class of 2009 has decided to join the fun.

Nease defensive end John Gallagher committed to Wake over the weekend. If Gallagher keeps his word all verbal commitments are non-binding his addition will give the Atlantic Coast Conference school five players from Nease.

"I've taken so much stress off of myself by doing this," Gallagher said. "Now, I can just be a kid for the next year-and-a-half of high school. I'm happy beyond words right now. I have so many friends up there, and I really just fell in love with the school. I'll get a great education and the campus is simply beautiful."

Gallagher, who stands 6-foot-4 and weighs 252 pounds, is coming off a season in which he was a dominant force for the Nease defense. He recorded 104 tackles, including 27 for a loss, and registered 14.5 sacks. He also forced three fumbles.

"We've had a lot of great defensive linemen here, but John may be the most gifted athletically of them all," Nease coach Danny Cowgill said. "He runs well. He can change direction well and he plays with great leverage."

Wake Forest may not be done plucking players from Nease this season.

Defensive tackle Frank Souza is being heavily courted by the Demon Deacons and a commitment could soon be coming.

"I'm definitely going to try to get Frank to go there," Gallagher said. "We're great friends and we've lined up next to each other since our freshman year."

Hunter Haynes, from Nease's 2006 class, will be a redshirt sophomore next season.

His brother Riley and Nease teammates quarterback Ted Stachitas and defensive lineman Ramon Booi all signed Wednesday.

Wake Forest recruits North Florida well. In the 2008 signing class, the Deacons added three Nease players, Bartram Trail tight end Andrew Parker and two players from Jacksonville Bolles.