BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. — Throughout his career in soccer and football, from South America to Tennessee to Wisconsin, Rafael Gaglianone has always worn No. 10.
When he made the decision to change it over the weekend, he did so amid mournful tears.
Gaglianone, a kicker from Sao Paulo, Brazil, will play his junior season with the Wisconsin football team wearing No. 27 because it's the number his late friend Sam Foltz wore.
Foltz, a punter at Nebraska, and Mike Sadler, a former punter at Michigan State, were killed in a weekend car accident after leaving the site of an elite kicking camp near Waukesha. Another passenger, LSU kicker Colby Delahoussaye, was injured.
Like Gaglianone, the three were working as instructors at a camp put on by Jamie Kohl. So was former UW punter Drew Meyer, who grew up in nearby Hartland. The car driven by Sadler was on its way to Meyer's home late Saturday night when it left the road in wet conditions and slammed into a tree.
Like many attending the camp, Gaglianone learned of the tragic consequences a day later.
"It was super tough for all of us," he said.
"Going to those camps for kickers and punters, you get to know those guys pretty well. You become pretty tight. You become a family.
"Everyone was feeling like we lost two of our brothers and one of them is hurt."
Gaglianone was particularly close to Foltz, whom he met three years ago.
"Right way from Day One he treated me like one of his close friends," Gaglianone said.
"He was a guy I always looked up to because he set the bar so high. That's what made it all so tough for me."
Gaglianone and Meyer plan to attend Foltz's funeral Saturday in Grand Island, Nebraska.
"I can't imagine how much they're hurting right now," Gaglianone said of the Foltz family. "I really need to be there for him."
Gaglianone said changing numbers was an easy decision, but he doesn't take it lightly.
"I wanted to honor his life," he said. "I wanted to honor him any way I could. To wear that 27, I'll try my best to honor him both on and off the field.
"It's going to be a good reminder for me every day to put on the jersey and realize how blessed I am just to get another game."
When word of the tribute was dispensed through social media Monday night, Gaglianone was cheered by Nebraska fans via Twitter.
"That is class," wrote one.
"Mr. Gaglianone will go far in life," wrote another.
"He gained a fan today," wrote another.
"Sam taught me so much in the two years we had," Gaglianone said. "I always want to honor him any way I can.
"This number is so much more to me than a number. I'm going to try and be better at everything that I do. I'll try to do my best at all times."
