Rodney Gallagher III ‘a great fit’ for Arizona’s offense

The West Virginia transfer receiver took one official visit to Arizona and knew immediately it was the school he wanted to finish his college career at.

“I came here for the fit, for the culture,” Gallagher. “It just felt right.”

After meeting Arizona head coach Brent Brennan, offensive coordinator Seth Doege and wide receivers coach Bobby Wade — three coaches who have experience coaching the position — “and listening to them to what they had to say about my game and watching my film and stuff, I knew off the bat I wanted to play for them,” Gallagher said.

“I’m glad I chose Arizona,” he added.

While the Arizona coaches made it enticing for Gallagher to come to Arizona for potentially two seasons, the ultimate deciding factor was being teammates with star quarterback Noah Fifita.

“Playing for a legit quarterback, Heisman quarterback, he’s special,” Gallagher said. “He knows the game (inside) and out. He’s a guy that wants you to be great. He looks out for us and we look out for him.”

Gallagher has left his mark on the program since arriving earlier this year, especially at slot receiver.

“Starting in the spring, I fell in love with Rodney,” Doege said. “When you’re in the transfer portal and recruiting guys, it’s easier than high school because you’re seeing them do it. If you look at Rod’s tape, he’s catching game-winning touchdowns in the Big 12. There’s a warrior component to Rodney that I really like.”

Added Doege: “The other thing about Rodney is when you put the ball in play and you put it in his hands, he’s tough to tackle because he’s really twitchy. I’m excited about Rod. I think he’s going to bring a ton of value for us.”

Hardwood to gridiron

Uniontown is about an hour outside of Pittsburgh and is closer to Gallagher’s old stomping grounds at WVU than Acrisure Stadium, the home venue of the Pittsburgh Steelers, a team Gallagher passionately rooted for growing — and still to this day. Gallagher’s favorite Steeler of all time is wide receiver Antonio Brown.

Uniontown is a “very small (blue-collar) town” and has a population of just over 9,000 people.

“Not a lot of great things come out of there,” Gallagher said. “I just had to keep my head down and go to work. I appreciate my family for doing it the right way. Being in western P-A (Pennsylvania), you gotta be tough and that’s how I hold myself. … I’ve always held myself that way, just to play hard and play for my team.”

There aren’t many similarities between Tucson and Uniontown, Pennsylvania, but there is one: both cities are passionate about basketball.

Tucson is a basketball-crazy town with a national brand in the Arizona Wildcats, while Uniontown has been known for its high school basketball history, according to Gallagher.

Gallagher was a standout guard for Laurel Highlands High School, averaging just over 20 points per game and generating recruiting interest as a basketball player, but made the decision at the end of his sophomore year that he wanted pursue the football path.

“It had to do with my size and basketball has evolved so much, and I just love the game of football more than I do basketball,” said the 5-10, 177-pound Gallagher. “It was about the brotherhood and how I fit into the future.”

Take him home

Gallagher was a four-star recruit in 2023 and was recruited to play receiver and defensive back. Even though Gallagher garnered interest from college football powers like Michigan, Oregon, Penn State and Texas, among others, he signed with West Virginia, the school that is just under a 40-minute drive from Gallagher’s hometown.

Gallagher signed to play at WVU during the Neal Brown era, which lasted six seasons and ended in 2024, when the school fired Brown and replaced him with former WVU head coach — and ex-Arizona head coach — Rich Rodriguez.

In three years at West Virginia, Gallagher had 64 receptions for 605 yards and three touchdowns. When West Virginia beat Arizona, 31-16, in Tucson in 2024, Gallagher had two catches for 14 yards and had a season-high 21 rushing yards. 

“Rodney was the starter there, Rodney caught punts there and did a lot for that football team,” Wade said.

Gallagher had the second-most receptions (28) for the Mountaineers in 2025, the only season he played for Rodriguez.

“RichRod, he’s a good dude,” Gallagher said. “It was a good scheme, I just didn’t see myself fitting in. Nothing against him and that program, but it just wasn’t for me at the time. I just wanted to come somewhere that’s spread more out (on offense). Nothing against him. I appreciate that program for giving me the chance to be on the field with them last year.”

The Wildcats are scheduled to face the Mountaineers in Morgantown on Oct. 10, which is also the first matchup between Arizona and Rodriguez since he was fired by the UA following the 2017 season.

“It’s very exciting,” said Gallagher, who said he’s expecting a large contingent of people when Arizona travels to WVU. “I get to play against my old coaches and stuff, but I’m not going to really look a lot into it, because it’s just another game at the end of the day and I need to go in with the same mindset like every game and play the type of ball I’m capable of playing.”

After a 4-8 season in 2025, Gallagher entered the transfer portal and became one of three additions at wide receiver via the portal, along with DJ Jordan (USC) and Jordan Ross (Colorado State). Gallagher played 97.2% of his offensive snaps at WVU as a slot receiver, according to Pro Football Focus.

Doege has two rules when it comes to playing slot receiver: “If you want to play in the slot, you better have great feel for space and you better be tough; Rod is both of those.”

Being a pro

Since arriving to the UA, one word has been often used to describe Gallagher: pro.

“Rodney is a professional,” Wade said. “He came with a lot of comfortability in playing college football in this conference. You can tell that he’s used to playing with high-profile guys and the competition being high. He was focused on what he needed to do to get comfortable within the offense.

“Also, gelling with the guys on the team. You see with guys in the locker room and around the building, how guys treat him. They show a lot of respect towards Rodney; coaches, as well, because of how he carries himself in the building, very professional, always on time and doing everything right. He’s very good with football IQ and can play multiple positions for us.”

Gallagher’s experience and skillset has increased the pressure for second-year wide receiver Giovanni Richardson, a Chandler Basha product who emerged as a freshman and played meaningful snaps last season, including the touchdown reception against Cincinnati that put Fifita ahead of Nick Foles for career passing touchdowns at Arizona.

Gallagher “comes in and really pushes Gio, playing the same position and having similar statures,” Wade said.

“It makes (Richardson) more competitive within the room, which Gio naturally is,” Wade said. “It also lets Gio know that there’s a quality candidate that is going to push him if things aren’t right for him. That healthy competition allows both of them to play at a high level.”

Richardson is a projected starter for the Wildcats this season, as part of a trio that includes Tre Spivey and Chris Hunter. Playing like a starter is “definitely a change” for Richardson compared to last season, when he was a wide-eyed freshman recovering from a gruesome leg injury he suffered in the Class 6A state championship game in 2024.

“I’m way more comfortable,” Richardson said. “Towards the end of the year, I was starting to feel it and play football the way I like to play. Now, being that guy is definitely easier to play at my own, not worry too much and just play ball. It’s a lot easier.”

Richardson said their “role in the slot is to push each other.”

“My role is to try to be the best I can be and try to push Rodney to be the best he can be,” he added.

Added Gallagher: “When I came here, when I first met Gio, I knew he was a great player. Every single day, we just want to push each other to be great. … Being a leader and coming to work every single day is something I need to do, not just for the room, but for my family also. I take pride in that. Everything counts. All the small things, I need to do it at a high level because I know it’ll pay off on the football field.”

Not only will Gallagher crack Arizona’s receiver rotation this season, he’ll be one of the Wildcats’ top special teams players. Thriving in that space is a pathway to the NFL. Recent examples are punt returner Luke Wysong and cornerback Michael Dansby, a seventh-round pick by the Seattle Seahawks. Wysong is in training camp with the Minnesota Vikings.

Special teams “is very important for the next level,” Gallagher said.

“You need to know what you’re doing if you want to get that invite (to the NFL), so I’m going to do anything that (special teams coordinator Craig Naivar) asks me to do, because I want to get to the next level, even if it’s only that way — returner, gunner, it doesn’t matter what it is,” Gallagher said. “At the end of the day, I just want to get on the field and play football.”

Gallagher has only been in Tucson for seven months, but he’s on track to be one of the Wildcats’ most valuable players this season.

“For him to trust us and want to come all the way over here to Arizona, and for him to be having the experience that he’s having, it makes you feel good as a coach,” Wade said.

“He’s a great fit and he’s got an opportunity to be big for us this season.”

Practice 4 notes and observations

It finally happened. Younger bro got the best of big bro, even if it was only for one play.

In one of Arizona’s final team periods of its fourth practice of fall training camp on Sunday, Arizona freshman linebacker Dash Fifita intercepted UA star quarterback Noah Fifita.

With the offense’s heels in the end zone, the older Fifita stepped up in the pocket and fired a pass over the middle and Dash Fifita jumped up to make the interception in pass coverage.

Dash Fifita’s best play in training camp earned him a rowdy celebration from Arizona’s defense.

There were other noteworthy moments from Arizona’s fourth training camp session. Here are the latest notes and observations from Dick Tomey Practice Fields and Davis Sports Center.

For the first time this training camp, the Wildcats held a one-on-one period between receivers and defensive backs. Freshman cornerback Xaier Hiler had a pass breakup against third-year receiver Brandon Phelps, who won the next rep. Second-year wide receiver Isaiah Mizell beat Wyoming transfer cornerback Tyrese Boss, but Boss had a pass breakup on the next rep.

Caleb “Jet” Smith got separation on a curl route against Northern Colorado safety transfer Cam Chapa in the one-on-one period. The 5-8, 167-pound Smith, who’s also taking reps at punt returner and kick returner, looks natural and mature for a freshman. Through the first four practices, Smith is one of the top non-transfer portal newcomers for the Wildcats.

Gallagher caught a touchdown from Noah Fifita in the right corner of the end zone.

Charlotte transfer cornerback Dwight Bootle had one of his top practices of training camp. Bootle had a pass breakup covering wide receiver Spivey in the one-on-one period, then sacked reserve quarterback Sawyer Anderson.

Anderson threaded a pass through multiple defenders to Portland, Oregon native and third-year wide receiver Landon Kelsey. Anderson and Gilbert native Luke Haugo are competing for Arizona’s backup quarterback spot. Even though Haugo struggled on Sunday, he completed a deep pass — off his back foot in the end zone — to Smith.

Linebacker Dominic Hanger and Howard transfer cornerback Zuri Watson each had forced fumbles in team periods. Watson, Bootle and Boss are among the favorites to win the second starting cornerback spot across from returning starter Jay’Vion Cole.

American Samoa native and freshman defensive tackle Kaisi Lafitaga tackled running back Cornelius Warren III for a loss of 2 yards. Sixth-year defensive end Tre Smith also had a sack.

Freshman offensive tackle and four-star recruit Malachi Joyner, who didn’t join the team until the summer, took second-team reps at right tackle. The 6-3, 297-pound Joyner was a part of a second-team offensive line that also included San Jose State transfer tackle Nate Hale, BYU transfer Jake Griffin, Hawaii product Javian Goo and Sione Tohi. Joyner recently won a state championship as a shot putter at Williams Field in Gilbert.

Former Arizona Diamondbacks and MLB standout Junior Spivey, the father of Tre Spivey and Arizona freshman cornerback Kingston Spivey, attended practice.

Scouts from Los Angeles Chargers, Kansas City Chiefs and New York Jets were in attendance.

Extra points

– Wade, on Arizona Cardinals legend Larry Fitzgerald getting inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame this past weekend: “Larry is big-time, man. Talk about a pro’s pro. He’s done everything right and is an amazing football player. … Larry has been great for the football community, great for the Arizona community. Hats off to him. He deserves it.”

– Wade, on the passing of longtime Arizona assistant coach Marc Lunsford, who died at 70 years old: “Real history there. Coach Luns was major when it comes to Arizona football. He’s been around a long time. He’s a Coach Tomey guy, as well, but was there prior to Tomey. He’s a pillar to (Arizona) football. He was always around. You look for guys that carry through different decades, legacies and coaches, and Luns was always that guy. He’s in a better place now, there’s no doubt about it. We lost a good one. … We just try to focus on the life and how great it was when he was here and how much he has done for Arizona football. We’re very grateful to Coach Lunsford and the time he put in here. It’s unfortunate, but we’ll pick up the flag for him.”