Geno Calgaro made his presence felt in a big way as a freshman on the Red Flash football team last season.
This fall, he has picked up where he left off in his second year in a Red Flash uniform.
Calgaro currently leads SFU in total tackles (27), as well as solo (14) and assisted (13) stops. Last season, he paced the team in total tackles (70) and finished third on the 2024 squad with seven-and-a-half tackles for loss.
The inside linebacker opened the 2025 season with 12 tackles, including two for loss, at Louisiana-Monroe on Aug. 28, earning Northeast Conference Defensive Player-of-the-Week honors.
Last Saturday at Buffalo, Calgaro made a career-high 15 tackles and was named an NEC Prime Performer for his efforts.
”I am definitely happy to get these accomplishments,” said the Canonsburg, Pennsylvania native. “I use them as motivation to keep playing at a high level and make the team better.”
Calgaro was named a preseason All-NEC selection along with Red Flash offensive lineman Mason Imbt in August. Before arriving at SFU, he was standout football player and wrestler at Canon-McMillan High School.
Calgaro was a three-time all-conference selection for the Fighting Big Macs in football and a Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL) champion in wrestling.
“You need to do your job and make plays when they come to you,” he said. “You don’t want to force anything.
“Make sure you do your job and there will be chances for you to make plays.”
Calgaro has taken advantage of his chances through two games. He will have another opportunity this weekend when his team opens its NEC schedule at Central Connecticut State.
“Geno is the most mentally and physically prepared dude there is,” said SFU linebackers coach Ben Bruni. “He takes notes in every single meeting and studies those notes while watching more film than anyone else.”
Calgaro’s leadership has been especially important on a very young Red Flash defensive unit in 2025. Seventeen of the 22 players on the SFU defense’s two-deep are freshmen and sophomores.
“Geno has done a great job of growing as a football player and leader by taking control of the defense,” said Bruni.
Calgaro takes a lot of pride in preparing for each opponent – on the field, in the weightroom and in the film room.
SFU redshirt sophomore linebacker Kent McMahon played with Calgaro at Canon-McMillan. He is also his teammate here at Saint Francis.
“His role has stayed the same – he was a leader on the defense in high school and now in college” said McMahon. “He has changed by getting bigger, faster and stronger.”
