Neville Gallimore is ready to get to work.
After being taken 82nd overall by the Dallas Cowboys in the 2020 NFL Draft, the 23-year-old defensive end wants to hit the ground running when his first season starts. For that to happen, Gallimore has been putting in the work in training camp in order to make an impression at the storied franchise.
One of the two Canadians to be featured in DAZN Canada's "Rookie Diaries" — an exclusive series putting viewers behind the scenes in the lives of homegrown NFL rookies — Gallimore tells Adnan Virk what his first few days at Cowboys' camp has been like.
"Our D-line coach, he's been hard on me but for good reason," Gallimore said in Wednesday's debut episode. "As a ballplayer, if a coach is hard on you and having you do a little bit extra, it's because they see something in you. I just take that as a positive thing."
Like many athletes who make it to the big leagues, Gallimore excelled in other sports than the one he ultimately chose. One of his older brothers played professional basketball in Belgium, but Gallimore said that avenue closed quickly when he stopped growing early in high school.
"I thought I was going to be 6-10, or at least 6-8," said the Ottawa native, who topped out at 6-2 and decided to focus on football.
Aside from basketball and football, Gallimore also competed in wrestling as a high schooler, but was ultimately discouraged from continuing because the coach felt he was "too athletic."
"I didn't want to wrestle," Gallimore admitted, adding that his old high school coach challenged students to participate in as many sports as possible. "Looking back, I really appreciate that. It helped a lot of guys stay out of trouble."
Watch "Getting To Know Neville Gallimore" full episodes of "Rookie Diaries" exclusively on DAZN, which also features the Rookie Diaries of Chase Claypool. Click here to sign up for a free trial.