Yukica Profile: Owen Gormley

By rbrown
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Updated: May 8, 2020

NOTE: The 2020 Joe Yukica New Hampshire Chapter of the National Football Foundation Scholar/Athlete banquet was cancelled this year because of COVID-19. Each Scholar/Athlete will be recognized with a commemorative program, a plaque and a personal profile that will appear in the program, on the New Hampshire Football Report, the Joe Yukica/New Hampshire Chapter web site (joeyukicafootballfoundation.org) and the Joe Yukica/New Hampshire Chapter Facebook page. This is one in a series of 39 profiles. Once published, each profile can be accessed by clicking on the athlete’s name at the bottom of the page.

OWEN GORMLEY
Salem High School

When he was asked to describe a situation that typified 5-foot-11, 230-pound guard/defensive tackle Owen Gormley, former Salem High School coach Rob Pike recalled a practice from Gormley’s sophomore season.

Gormley was on the “look team” defensive line and was going up against a 300-pound senior offensive lineman, who Pike called the strongest player on the team.

“Owen beats the senior and the coaches … we get on the starter: ‘Hey, come on. You gotta do a better job,’” Pike said. “I would say 95 percent of the time in that situation the look-team kid knows the starter is going to come after him harder and they just brace themselves. They kinda quit and protect themselves, but not Owen Gormley. He goes even harder and he beat the senior again in the same fashion — just physically beat him. I looked at one of the other coaches and said, ‘We have to get that kid on the field.’ He was that mean and aggressive.”

Gormley, widely considered to be one of the best offensive linemen in the state last season, was known for being an intense competitor, traits that carried over to his academic career as well. Gormley was ranked sixth academically in a class of 271 when he was nominated for the Joe Yukica New Hampshire Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame Scholar/Athlete Award. He is one of 39 athletes who received that award this year.

Gormley, who also competed in track and field for Salem (shot put), was selected to play in the CHaD New Hampshire East/West All-Star Game and will be a walk-on with the University of New Hampshire football program in the fall.

“We tell guys to block until the whistle — he does it,” Pike said. “Turn on the film and you see him driving guys 10, 20 yards down field away from the play. The play is over behind him, but he doesn’t know it because he just does things exactly how you say it. Most kids will get their job done, move the guy out of the way, and then they kind of regroup and see what’s going on. He doesn’t. He finishes blocks as well as any lineman I’ve ever coached.”

Gormley started in some games as a sophomore, then became a full-time starter during his junior and senior seasons. He was a Division I South First Team All-Conference selection in 2018 and 2019.

Pike, who resigned following the 2019 season to become the head coach at Lowell (Mass.) High School, called Gormley a perfectionist in everything he does.

“He’s very serious,” Pike said. “He’s very intense in that whatever he does he wants to be the absolute best at it, and that includes school. He takes his school work really seriously.

“He’s the kid who does it exactly how teachers and coaches want people to do it. He goes to practice after school, he goes right home and gets something to eat then starts his homework. He’s a real serious and intense kid about everything, and it’s led to a lot of his success.”

Q and A with Owen Gormley

Q: Please describe the most memorable moment of your high school football career.

A: The most memorable moments of my high school football career came during double sessions the first two years. Two weeks of double sessions and the hot days built a tough team with great spirits. By the end of the two weeks, the field was nothing but dirt, and we were all better conditioned and suited for the season to come.

Q: Tell us about someone who has had a significant influence on your life.

A: I would say my mother and father both worked in conjunction to make the most significant impact on my life. My mother helped lay a solid academic foundation to build upon early on in elementary school, which I only built on in the following years. My father helped athletically by introducing me to football and working with me, so I could refine my technique and build strength.

Q: What is your favorite subject in school and why?

A: My favorite subject in school is mathematics and physics because both play significant roles in understanding and defining the world and its features. Both subjects work together to help produce some of the most important tools that have helped to move forward in innovation and technology.

Q: What life lessons have you learned from football?

A: The major life lesson I have learned from football is that there is always someone better than you, so do not become satisfied with where you currently are and keep working to get better.

Q: What is your dream job?

A: My dream job is somewhere within the field of electrical engineering. There are a few areas that this occupation can lead to, and I have not narrowed it down to one specifically yet.

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2020 Scholar/Athletes: Keith Albergo (Winnacunnet), Thatcher Allen (Exeter), Cole Ames (Lebanon), Mason Belsky (Windham), Patrick Brust (Bishop Brady), Jaedon Cliche (Exeter), Riley Desmarais (Windham), Bobby DiCicco (Windham), Jared Dyer (Merrimack), Casey Gladu (Portsmouth), Owen Gormley (Salem), Jack Grogan (Bedford), Steven Guerette (Bow), Evan Haskins (Pelham), Samson Hodges (Milford), Ethan Holt (Bishop Guertin), Jack Jones (Bedford), Charlie Kneissl-Williams (Bedford), Hunter Lassard (St. Thomas), Joseph Lupo (Bishop Guertin), Jake MacInnis (Pinkerton), Braden McDonnell (Nashua South), Will MacLean (St. Thomas), Hayden Moses (Bishop Guertin), Riley Mulvey (Salem), Kyle O’Connor (Nashua South), Nolan Pafford (Portsmouth), Wade Rainey (Lebanon), Ismael Rivera (Bishop Brady), Oceanne Skoog (Newfound), Caleb Smith (Lebanon), Rolando Sylvain-Stott (Newfound), John Thibault (Trinity), Zach Twardosky (Merrimack), Gavin Urda (Milford), Carter Vedrani (Campbell), Jacob Wenger (Trinity), Jon Willeman (Lebanon) and Devin Wood (Merrimack).