Benji Gosnell felt horrible when he heard the news that Hokies starting tight end Nick Gallo was going to have season-ending knee surgery. Unfortunately, he knows all too well what Gallo is going through.

Gosnell dealt with two ACL injuries in the last two years that kept him off the field as a senior at Carroll County High School and forced him to redshirt as a freshman at Virginia Tech in 2022. Those were extremely tough times, and he understands how much it means to Gallo that he and the other tight ends are there supporting him.

“When I heard it, my heart sunk, obviously, because going through that twice, I know how hard it can get, not just physically but mentally,” Gosnell said Tuesday. “The one thing I thought of is just always make sure to check up on him, which we’ve been doing. Always make sure he’s doing fine, see where he is mentally, because that’s the biggest part, that’s the biggest aspect of an injury like that. Physically, Nick’s tough, he’s going to come back and things like that, but it’s all about the mental aspect.

“Nick is just a guy that you can look at and take notes on how to approach the game, not just the game on the field but off the field, as far as taking care of your body, film study, approach to practices, practicing like a pro. Taking like mental reps when you’re not in. You don’t really have to talk to Nick to learn from him, which is probably what our whole team could say about Nick. He’s a vocal leader, obviously, but he’s a leader by example, maybe the best on the team.”

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