All-league linebacker Victor Gillespie was basking in the afterglow of Sobrato's best football season in school history when wrestling coach, Phil Luna, blind-sided him with a new challenge.
"I told him, 'you have to bring the same mentality you had in football to the wrestling mat this year,'" Luna recalled. "He didn't think anyone could stop him on the football field. He shut down every play. He was an animal."
After guiding the Bulldogs to their first division title and CIF-Central Coast Section playoff berth, Gillespie rose to Luna's challenge in winter, reeling off an impressive 38-12 record at 171 and 189 pounds. The senior earned a third straight trip to his championship match in the Blossom Valley Athletic League finals and later placed in the top 10 at CIF-CCS.
He ended his wrestling career as Sobrato's first individual league champion in program history.
"He worked extremely hard in practice and never missed a practice in the offseason," Luna said. "He taught the other guys to grow and want to get better. He was a great leader, but he kept the team loose."
As captain, Gillespie carried his team's flag in football as well.
He barreled his way onto the first-team all-BVAL West Valley Division list with 76 total tackles - 39 solo - plus a team-high four sacks and two fumble recoveries. Gillespie also was a solid offensive lineman.
"He was never off the field," said Sobrato's departed football coach Dan Brown.
Gillespie was in on 12 of the first 16 defensive plays against Prospect and amassed 11 tackles, two sacks and a fumble recovery against Pacific Grove.
"If a play was going his way, he'd blow it up," Brown said. "He had this edge about him, this wild side. The more you rode him as a coach, the more determined he played. He was very mature for his age. He was a guy's guy."
Bulldog players and fans still talk about a hit Gillespie made during this year's matchup with Andrew Hill - a game that proved crucial in the division title race.
With a small lead and a fourth-and-goal play looming for Sobrato's defense, Andrew Hill tried for the go-ahead score on its sixth play inside the Bulldogs' 10-yard line. Gillespie chased the quarterback to the sideline and leveled him two yards shy of the pylon.
"He put him in the cheap seats," Brown said. "That saved our butts."
Scott Adams Scott Adams covers Morgan Hill sports for South Valley Newspapers. Send him an email or call him at 779-4106.
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