Biography.guide
Home › People › Head coach › Barry Gallup
Portrait of Barry Gallup

Barry Gallup

b. 1946

American football player and coach

Don't just read it — keep itBiographies to ownE-book · Audio · Video From $7 →

About Barry Gallup

Born 1946. Barry Gallup is an American head coach, american football player and basketball player.

Barry Gallup Sr. (born August 15, 1946) is an American former college football coach and college athletics administrator. He spent 46 years as a player, coach, or administrator for the Boston College Eagles football team and was the head football coach at Northeastern University from 1991 to 1999, compiling a record of 38–60–1.

Athletic career During his prep years, Gallup played at Swampscott High School and Deerfield Academy. At Boston College, he set school records for receptions (87) and receiving yards (1,325). In 1973, he succeeded John Petercuskie as the Eagles' defensive line coach. In 1981, he was a frontrunner from the head coaching job, but the school chose to hire Maine head coach and former BC assistant Jack Bicknell instead. Bicknell retained Gallup on his coaching staff, moving him to receivers coach and recruiting coordinator.

As BC's primary recruiter, Gallup helped bring Doug Flutie, Joe Nash, Fred Smerlas and Peter Cronan to the school and was a key builder of the BC teams that played in the 1982 Tangerine Bowl, 1983 Liberty Bowl, 1985 Cotton Bowl, and 1986 Hall of Fame Bowl. As receivers coach, he coached several future professional players, including Brian Brennan, Mark Chmura, Kelvin Martin, Pete Mitchell, Tom Waddle, and Darren Flutie.

After being passed over for the head coaching job again after Bicknell's firing, Gallup left BC to become the head football coach at Northeastern. He inherited a team that went 1-10 and led them to a 4-7 record in his first year. During his tenure as AD, Northeastern earned NCAA certification and hired men's hockey coach Bruce Crowder and men's basketball coach Dave Leitao.

In 2000, Gallup returned to Boston College as assistant athletic director for football operations. In 2013, he became the senior associate athletic director for football and alumni relations. He retired in 2022 after 46 years with the football program.

Personal Gallup resides in Wellesley with wife, Victoria. Their oldest son, Darren Douglas Gallup, was going to play football at Harvard in 2003, but was killed in a motor vehicle accident his senior year at Belmont Hill School. Their youngest son, Barry Jr., played football at Notre Dame. Daughter Lisa Ann Gallup died at the age of 26 from cancer.

Head coaching record

Biography shop

Don’t just read it —
keep it.

Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.

  • E-book
  • Audio
  • Video
Browse the shop — from $7

Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free

Important facts

Birth century
Nationality
Education
Boston College

People in Barry Gallup's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Barry Gallup's

Frequently asked questions

Who is Barry Gallup?

American football player and coach

When was Barry Gallup born?

Barry Gallup was born on 15 August 1946 in Lynn.

What is Barry Gallup's occupation?

Barry Gallup is a head coach, american football player and basketball player.

What nationality is Barry Gallup?

Barry Gallup is American.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Barry Gallup

· Wikidata: Q4864246

· DBpedia: Barry Gallup

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Barry Gallup. https://biography.guide/barry-gallup/

MLA: "Barry Gallup." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/barry-gallup/.

Chicago: "Barry Gallup." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/barry-gallup/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

Page generated 2026-09-27 05:26 UTC