Robert Gallery...

[Angry Pope]

Robert Gallery


By Vince D'Adamo, SPORTS REPORTER
Thursday, August 24, 2006 1:17 AM PDT


D'Adamo: What stood out and growing up and playing sports in a small town?

Gallery: Everything is on a smaller scale. There wasn't that many kids in our school or in my class. Sports are sports, but I lived in the country with no big cities around.

D'Adamo: What positions did you play on your high school team?

Gallery: I played tight end, defensive end, linebacker and longsnapper.

D'Adamo: Which other sports did you compete in besides football?

Gallery: I did track and basketball as well as football.

D'Adamo: What was it like on Friday nights on game day in your hometown?

Gallery: It was great. It's a farm community. Everybody came out to watch the football games. The football field was surrounded by cornfields. It was cool. It's a small-town atmosphere.

D'Adamo: Having had the opportunity to play multiple sports, what did you enjoy about playing a variety of sports as opposed to specializing?

Gallery: You get a variety of things. You get to experience all the different sports. There's times you barely have enough guys to make a team. Everybody did everything. It was fun because you got to know everybody real well. There were no tryouts to make up the team. Whoever wanted to play was on the team and they picked the best guys from there.

D'Adamo: Do you think it's tougher for small-town kids to get recognized by scouts?

Gallery: Yes, because the colleges didn't really look a lot at the real small schools. It was what it was. You did what you could. You weren't in the major papers but that's OK because you do what you do. I got my chance (at the University of Iowa) and took it from there.

D'Adamo: Do you think there's a prejudice against small-town athletes because people might scoff at the competition they face?

Gallery: You could say that, but when it comes down to playing against someone it's about whoever performs the best.

Initially it might be that way, but it all worked out in the end for me.

D'Adamo: What was it like when you graduated from high school and saw the world beyond the town of Masonville, Iowa?

Gallery: I had always gotten around. My older brother played football at Iowa so I'd go to a lot of his games. I knew about the rest of the world.

It wasn't like we never left the farm. I met a lot of new people as college went on and met different friends from different parts of the world and from different backgrounds.

D'Adamo: What was it like when you went from high school to college, and a Division I-A college at that, when you realized you had to work even harder for your success?

Gallery: That's true with anything. I didn't think I was out of place just because I came from a small school.

I just went in and started for four years. You just have to take advantage of the situation you have and go from there.

Just because you come from a small town doesn't mean you're any less talented.

Maybe the talent level wouldn't be as high as with schools with thousands of kids, but it's all about what you do as an individual.

D'Adamo: What type of advice would you give to kids from St. Helena and Calistoga regardless of whether they go on to play sports?

Gallery: Do everything you can do. Play all the sports you can and be as well-rounded as you can. If you work hard, you'll get your shot.

D'Adamo: Whether it was sports or community-related events, how much of a sense of oneness and togetherness did you feel?

Gallery: Everybody knew you. Everybody backed you in your success. They were proud of you. The more success you have, the prouder they are.

D'Adamo: What would you be doing if you did not have the chance to play professional football?

Gallery: I'd probably be teaching. I have a teaching degree, so I'd probably be teaching elementary school in a small town in Iowa.

D'Adamo: Would that be one way for you to give back to the type of community that gave a lot to you?

Gallery: Absolutely, but I'm going to play football until I can't play anymore.

D'Adamo: What do you enjoy about having training camp in the Napa Valley?

Gallery: It's beautiful surroundings. We've got a good facility setup. The little time we get off, it's nice to see the countryside up here. You get to see a part of the world you've never seen before.

D'Adamo: What parts of Napa Valley have you had a chance to see on a rare day off?

Gallery: I've see the different vineyards. It's cool to see how all of that works.

 

[Angry Pope]

Moving day
Raiders switching Gallery from right tackle to left

Posted: Monday August 28, 2006 1:46AM; Updated: Monday August 28, 2006 1:46AM

NAPA, Calif. (AP) -- With only a handful of practices left before the regular season starts, the Oakland Raiders are on the verge of doing what they've never done before: finishing the preseason unbeaten.

How long that trend holds, though, depends on the shape of Oakland's offensive line. Starting center Jake Grove has a shoulder injury that could keep him out three to four weeks. Left guard Barry Sims is nursing a sore heel that kept him out of Oakland's past two exhibition games.

Then there's Robert Gallery, whose transition from right tackle to his more natural position at left tackle has been one of the focal points of the Raiders' preseason.

Gallery, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2004 draft after winning the Outland Trophy at Iowa, was criticized when he got off to a slow start in camp. It wasn't until Oakland's 23-7 win over San Francisco on Aug. 20 that he and the rest of the Raiders' offense got a handle on his new position.

"It's life in the NFL," Gallery said. "It's why they pay us. I just have to do my stuff and everybody can write and say what they want. You are away from something for two years and it takes a little bit to get back to where I was."

The Raiders tried to hasten the process by surrounding Gallery with Hall of Famers like head coach Art Shell and offensive line coach Jackie Slater. Oakland also brought in assistant line coach Irv Eatman, who spent 11 seasons in the NFL.

Gallery's move back to left tackle after a two-year stint on the right side of the line began in the offseason during Oakland's two mini-camps. Shell thought the Raiders would be better off with the 6-foot-7-inch, 325-pound Gallery where he could protect quarterback Aaron Brooks' blindside.

Gallery injured a quad muscle just before the start of camp, however, delaying his progress. When he returned to the field, the rust was evident. In the Hall of Fame game against Philadelphia, he was called for a false start on the first series, beaten for a sack on the second drive and tossed to the ground easily by an Eagle defender on the third.

Oakland's starting offense managed just one touchdown against Philadelphia, and the line continued to sputter the following week against Minnesota.

"I need to get back into the little things and get away from worrying about what everybody else thinks," Gallery said. "When you are doing well, everybody is your best friend. When you have some problems, they want you out of here.

It hasn't helped Gallery that he is working with his fourth offensive line coach in four years, dating back to his senior season at Iowa.

Shell said he is confident Gallery and the rest of Oakland's offensive line will be ready in time for the season-opener Sept. 11 against AFC West rival San Diego. He went so far as to tell Gallery he expects him to be in the Pro Bowl this year.

"We've got to work on the mechanics and awareness of what's going on around him," Shell said. "But I'm not worried about Robert. Robert's going to be fine."