Dominick Bragalone has always been a special player. I can vividly remember calling a few of his scholastic games. After each broadcast, I became more and more impressed with his blazing speed and effortless power. Dom was outstanding, and the opposition could only hope to contain him. It didn’t matter if they stuffed the box. Number 32 was unstoppable. He was such a joy to watch. Man. Dom made it look so easy. Like a video game. Oftentimes, I just sat in complete silence. I simply ran out of adjectives describing the way he ran. Dude. We’re on the air. Say something. Please.

A few years have passed, and I am thrilled to see the hard-nosed, scrappy South Williamsport native is still turning some heads. Dom is coming off an incredible junior season at Lehigh University. His stats were off the charts in 2017. Bragalone ran for 1,388 yards with 18 touchdowns. He was the leading rusher and top scorer in the entire FCS. Say what? Last I counted, there were 124 Division I-AA schools playing football in the US. Props Dom. That’s insane.

The Associated Press recently named the bruising running back FIRST TEAM All-American. Bragalone was the horse that led Lehigh to their second straight Patriot League title. He is the first Mountain Hawk to earn first-team All-American honors since 2011.

Dom was named Player of the Year and earned first team All-Patriot League honors for the third straight time. He was also tabbed as a finalist for the Walter Payton Award, given to the outstanding offensive player in the FCS. Bragalone eventually finished seventh in the voting. #idemandarevote.

Dom became the first Lehigh player to post three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. His 2017 tallies were the second highest in school history. Oh did I mention he still has another year of eligibility?

Bragalone eclipsed the 100-yard rushing mark in seven contests, including all six league games, and posted a pair of 200-yard efforts. He ran for a career-high 218-yards at Fordham and another 201-yard, career-best, four-touchdown effort versus Holy Cross. Bragalone now has an astonishing 3,567 career rushing yards and 39 touchdowns on the ground. My man is only 129 yards shy of Lehigh’s career record.

What a season. Congratulations Dom on a job well done. Kudos to you and your family for being named a 2017 All-American. Merry Christmas kids. Cheers.