Thom Gatewood '72 (Football) Monogram Club Staff

Thom Gatewood began a four-year term on the Monogram Club board in 2021. Gatewood was a standout on the football field and in the classroom during his time at Notre Dame. He was a Dean’s List student all eight semesters on campus, along with being an All-American and Academic All-American. Gatewood also has the distinction of being the first African-American team captain in Notre Dame football history. 

In 1970, Gatewood earned first team All-America honors and helped the Irish to a Cotton Bowl victory over top-ranked Texas. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2015 and the Cotton Bowl Hall of Fame in 2020. The Baltimore native also is a member of the Maryland Sports Hall of Fame.

Gatewood graduated from the University in the spring of 1972. After being drafted by the New York Giants in the fifth round of the 1972 NFL Draft, he spent two seasons with the team before moving on from football.  

Following his playing career, Gatewood served as the director and stage manager of ABC News and ABC Sports where he earned both an Emmy and a Peabody. In addition to serving as founder and CEO of Blue Star Products, he sits on the National Football Foundation Board of Directors, the Advisory Board of “Healthy Children, Healthy Futures”, is a volunteer for Minority Athletes Networking, and is co-owner of Larkspur Lane Ltd. He and his wife, Susan, reside in South Bend. The couple has one child.