Tarquinio finishes successful career as long-snapper

In 2001 Gavin Tarquinio began the journey that would take him into the limelight of Tech football. His career here at Tech was not marked by a lot of press attention, and it really deserved more. As long snapper, he played a position that gets recognition only when a mistake is made, and for that reason, Tarquinio has gotten hardly any recognition.

Gavin did not have the easiest of starts at Tech, but has now managed to work his way up to being a possible NFL signing this April.

Tarquinio, a red-shirt senior, is a member of the class of the last recruits from the George O’Leary era. Gavin was recruited out of Marietta High School in Marietta, Georgia.

“I liked O’Leary a lot. He was very militaristic. If you were 15 minutes early, then you were pretty much late. Coach Gailey was very positive, very motivating in the sense that he would give you a pat on the back and keep you going. O’Leary took a different approach. He expected you to do well, and if you didn’t then he would say something to you. I grew up more with the “expect you to do well” style. Gailey was a great change in that you were actually being encouraged instead getting the constant negative criticism,” Tarquinio said.

Over his five-year career at Tech, Tarquinio has developed into one of the nation’s best collegiate long snappers, but his specialty in high school was anything but long snapper. The 6’3”, 250-pound Tarquinio was recruited more for his athletic ability and frame rather than for one position.

“I was recruited for all different positions. Depending on what school you look at, I was recruited as a quarterback. I played QB in high school. I was recruited as a defensive end, linebacker, offensive line, and a fullback. So that pretty much was what those guys who are recruited as athletes are like. Most of them are small fast guys, but for the lack of a word I was a ‘big’ athlete. I could play pretty much any of the medium-skill positions,” Tarquinio said.

Gavin was able to get graduate from high school early and enrolled at Tech the next spring. He was told that the quickest way for him to work up to a starting position would be for him to switch positions to center. He followed O’Leary’s advice, but unfortunately was unable to fill the center position as he tore his ACL during spring workouts his year. In his second summer he dislocated his shoulder, which helped to contribute to the fact that he wouldn’t see his first game-action until his third year.

On top of the injury problems that plagued Tarquinio early on in his career, he experienced troubles in the classroom as well. Early on in his career he made a 1.87 GPA. However, he was able to work through his troubles and graduate with around a 3.0 GPA with a B.S. in Management. He was named to the ACC Academic Honor Roll in the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons. With one degree behind him, he is now currently pursuing a second degree in Economics.

In his third year at Tech, Tarquinio was moved to tight end. He played in five games and started against Tulsa in the 2004 Humanitarian Bowl.

After this season, Gavin was moved by Gailey to long snapper. He replaced long time snapper Andrew Economos who has succeeded in the NFL and who is currently playing for the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The long snapper position is not the most highly touted of positions, and the details that go along with playing the position are somewhat are somewhat trivialized. While the main job of the long snapper is obviously to get the ball on target to either the holder on a field goal or the punter, there are other details that must be considered when playing the position. A good example of this is what occurs on a punt.

“At Tech, we snap punts 14 yards from center. In the NFL, it is 15 yards. Before the snap, Chris Reis is the personal protector. We talk back and forth. Prior to the snap we have to look at how the opposing team is lined up. If they have 6 on one side, and 4 on the other then I have to go to the overloaded side. I block what is referred to as the ‘A’ gap. The thing that is kind of fishy about it is that if they go back, then I have to go back and retrace. If the guy on the left comes around, then I have to go back and block him. You also never know who will be lining up. Sometimes teams will put up wide receivers, and some teams will put up defensive linemen,” Tarquinio said.

Tarquinio mentioned the practical anonymity of his position.

“The thing about a long snapper is that no one knows who I am unless I goof up,” Tarquinio said.

Part of the reason why Tarquinio chose Tech was so that he could stay close to his family. He wanted to be able to spend time with relatives. He also developed a good relationship with roommate and fellow teammate, Chris Reis. Often times, Reis and Tarquinio will help each other become better players. Both are currently training for the next level. Tarquinio has been helping Reis with defensive drills, while Reis helps Tarquinio by taking snaps.

“When it came down to it though, I had a younger brother that was 11, and just turned 12 last weekend. I’m a real big family man so I didn’t want to go very far away. So I picked Tech for it being close to my family,” Tarquinio said.

In the future, Tarquinio would love to follow in the footsteps of Economos, a good friend of his, by making it into the NFL. He was invited to the NFL combine which is an accomplishment in itself.Around 250 to 300 players are invited from all levels of college football. These include players like Reggie Bush and Vince Young. Gavin is currently rated as the top long snapper in the nation, which is a distinction he hopes will allow him to move on to the next level. If he goes undrafted and must enter the “real world” he would prefer to become an investment banker or lean toward finance.

With all that Gavin has gone through in his years at Tech, he should be prepared for any and all challenges that either the NFL or the business world throws at him.