{"id":22364,"date":"2026-06-11T10:41:35","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T14:41:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/?p=22364"},"modified":"2026-06-17T14:56:01","modified_gmt":"2026-06-17T18:56:01","slug":"the-next-chapter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/the-next-chapter\/","title":{"rendered":"The Next Chapter"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In 2024, the Monmouth football team visited Florida International University in search of its first-ever Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) win. The game was played at Pitbull Stadium, and as the team entered, Head Coach Kevin Callahan asked his players and staff, \u201cWho [in the heck] would name their stadium Pitbull?\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Callahan\u2019s son, Kevin Jr., quickly explained that Pitbull was one of the most popular recording artists in the world and that he purchased the naming rights to the stadium. The senior Callahan dusted off the pop culture gaffe and led the Hawks to a thrilling 45\u201342 victory. The FBS triumph marked yet another program milestone since its inception in 1992.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is a truth (and innocence) to that story that only college coaches fully understand. Knowing the likes of Pitbull and many other pop culture references is a privilege that Callahan surrendered long ago. Building a college football program from scratch, leading it to 197 victories, and capping his tenure with a 6-2 conference record in the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) can require tunnel vision. And now, standing in the light just outside of that tunnel, Callahan can look back with pride and perhaps amazement. No one\u2014not even Coach Cal\u2014could have envisioned the growth and success of a program that had no field, staff, or players when it began in 1992. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For decades, the title \u201conly head coach in the history of football at Monmouth\u201d belonged to Callahan. That changed last December<\/a>, when Callahan stepped away from coaching and into a role as special advisor to the athletic administration, and Jeff Gallo \u201905, \u201912M, was named the program\u2019s second head coach. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two men are far from strangers. Gallo played under Callahan from 2000 to 2003 and was a highly decorated offensive lineman. He joined the coaching staff in 2005 and has paced the sidelines with Callahan for 21 seasons.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Change is never easy, but this transition is rooted in familiarity. Six months into it, we asked both coaches (separately) a series of the same questions to better understand what\u2019s changed, what hasn\u2019t, and where the program is headed.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What is a character trait that a football player must possess to succeed at Monmouth?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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KC<\/strong>: Discipline is the number one thing. When the program started, we didn\u2019t have what other programs had\u2014no scholarships, attractive facilities, or even tradition. What we did have were guys who were disciplined and had a belief that, \u201cYes, we can do this.\u201d Discipline and work ethic have been the driving force behind this program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

JG<\/strong>: You need disciplined people with a great work ethic. The players who are successful here are disciplined and hold themselves accountable. Team chemistry is coveted but difficult to capture.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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\"Kevin
Callahan (left) coached Gallo as a Hawks offensive lineman from 2000\u20132003. Photo courtesy of Monmouth Athletics. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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What component do you feel is essential to developing it?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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KC<\/strong>: The entire group needs to believe that no single player is more important than the team. The roles may differ, obviously, but once you establish an attitude where everyone feels a responsibility to excel at their role and compete as one group, that\u2019s when you can experience something special.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

JG<\/strong>: You need to trust each other and hold each other accountable, and you need to celebrate each other. I\u2019m Italian, and when we sit down and eat together, we celebrate each other\u2019s successes and pick each other up when we\u2019re down. When teams have that trust and look out for each other, it\u2019s a beautiful thing. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What have you enjoyed most about coaching?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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KC<\/strong>: I enjoyed the interaction with players. You have 100-plus players on your football roster and not a day goes by that a player doesn\u2019t have an issue. It might be personal, football-related, or academic, and you may not have all the answers. But the athletes take comfort in knowing someone is there to listen and look out for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

JG<\/strong>: I love helping people set goals and working with them to reach their goals and potential. And I love the brotherhood that forms when a group of people are dedicated to a common goal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I started as an assistant, I was living in a basement. My parents came to me and said, \u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d and I just told them, \u201cI\u2019ve got it.\u201d You don\u2019t really worry about the struggles when there is so much fulfillment from the work and everything that comes with it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What has changed about college football\u2014and what is the same?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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KC<\/strong>: The biggest change is the athlete\u2019s expectations. We\u2019re in a world today where we\u2019re talking about sums of money; we\u2019re talking about NIL [name, image, and likeness]; we\u2019re talking about facilities. It wasn\u2019t too long ago that athletes were simply grateful for an opportunity to play college football. That still exists in many cases. But there\u2019s so many people involved now who influence the athletes and how they approach college football. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The championship mindset is still the same. And that is, if we play together and pull for each other, we can accomplish something great.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

JG<\/strong>: There have been a lot of changes. The transfer portal and NIL money are at the top of the list. But what\u2019s stayed the same is that it\u2019s all about the people. If you have the right people in your program, you can build a winning culture. I don\u2019t think that will ever change<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What is something you enjoy in your spare time that might surprise people?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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KC<\/strong>: Well, I\u2019m still figuring out what to do with spare time [laughs]. But I do a lot of reading. I like doing crosswords. There hasn\u2019t been much downtime for me over the years, so I\u2019m just now trying to figure out what my niche is. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

JG<\/strong>: I love all kinds of music\u2014Jimmy Buffett, Metallica, Kenny Chesney, Madonna\u2014my taste is very eclectic. I grew up outside of the amphitheater in Camden, so we went to concerts constantly. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What about Monmouth football do you hope gives alumni pride?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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KC<\/strong>: The continued growth of the program from where we started through today, from fielding a team of non-scholarship players, to competing in the CAA, to hopefully contending for a national championship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

JG<\/strong>: I hope they\u2019re proud of how we represent the University. I hope they\u2019re proud of how we maximize what we have and compete at a national level as a smaller, private university. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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The transition is still fresh, but how have things been different?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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KC<\/strong>: The day used to travel 100 mph, and now it hovers around five mph. Coaching college football is a 24\/7 job, so the biggest change has been having more time on my hands. I\u2019m developing a greater appreciation for things that exist outside of football.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

JG<\/strong>: It\u2019s a different role, but I\u2019ve been here and know the people here. I know the players, coaches, University staff, and the processes. There will be some challenges and a learning curve for sure, but it\u2019s not like I\u2019m a new coach who\u2019s drinking from a fire hydrant.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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If you had one final game ball to give to someone, who would it go to? <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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KC<\/strong>: That\u2019s a tough question. There are so many people who have influenced and helped me that deserve that game ball. Obviously, my wife, Ann Marie, immediately comes to mind, along with my son, Kevin, and daughter, Julia. Dr. Marilyn McNeil had such a major influence on my coaching career and how we developed as a program. I think I\u2019d need to pass that ball around to a different person each week for a year.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Prior to your first game as head coach, if you could give out one game ball to someone who helped you get to this position, who would it go to?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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JG<\/strong>: That would be Coach Cal. I met him when I was 17 years old. I\u2019ve played for him and coached alongside him. He\u2019s taught me so much and has been an incredible person in my life and career.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What advice do you have for Jeff as Monmouth\u2019s new head coach?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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KC<\/strong>: Follow what\u2019s in your heart. Do what you feel is best for the program. You know, today is not yesterday and this game constantly changes, so you need to adapt as a head coach. Jeff is extremely intelligent, and if he follows his heart and trusts his instincts, he\u2019ll always do what\u2019s best for Monmouth football.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What is the best advice Coach Cal has given you about becoming Monmouth\u2019s new head coach? <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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JG<\/strong>: He told me how important it is to just be myself. Don\u2019t try to be someone I\u2019m not. Be genuine, be honest, and put forth a great effort. He and I are different personality wise, but we have the same core values and beliefs. Deep down, we love Monmouth football.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Six months after Jeff Gallo was named head coach of Monmouth football, we sat down with him and his predecessor, Kevin Callahan, the man who built the program, to reflect on the transition.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60,"featured_media":22389,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"image_focus":"{\"x\":35,\"y\":45}","hide_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[94],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22364","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-athletics"],"thumbnail":"\"\"","catString":"Athletics","issue":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22364","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/60"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22364"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22364\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22502,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22364\/revisions\/22502"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22389"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22364"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22364"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22364"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}