Whether under the glare of the Friday Night Lights or in the air-conditioned classroom, Callum Schweitzer’s excellence knows no bounds.
Schweitzer earned the Peninsula Athletic League Bay Division Player of the Year honors last season as quarterback for the Los Gatos High School Wildcats, while maintaining a 3.85 GPA.
His performance culminated in a 2026 National Football Foundation Northern California Scholar-Athlete Award, which recognizes a student-athlete’s ability to balance athletics with classroom duties, while contributing to the wider community.
And so, one night before the Oscars, Schweitzer had his moment in the spotlight, alongside 23 other seniors from Northern California.
The annual awards ceremony was held March 14 at the Grand Bay Hotel San Francisco, which is located in Redwood City.
“There were a lot of impressive resumes from all the other athletes, and being a part of that group was special,” the Yale University-bound Schweitzer said. “I really enjoyed being around a bunch of other motivated student-athletes and seeing all the amazing things they’ve done.”
Last season, Schweitzer led the Wildcats to a league championship and Central Coast Section Division I title game appearance. He completed 66.7% of his passes and threw for 2,452 yards, with 25 touchdown passes and seven interceptions. Schweitzer was equally potent with his feet, finishing as the team’s second-leading rusher.
He averaged 7.1 yards per carry and ran for eight touchdowns. When plays break down as they inevitably do in a football game, Schweitzer had the athleticism to make something out of nothing. His explosive playmaking ability, accurate passes and laser-like focus on the field paired with his diligence and work ethic in the classroom made him a model student-athlete whose impact extends far beyond the gridiron.
“Callum represents the very best of what we hope for in our student-athletes,” Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School District Superintendent Heath Rocha said in a press release. “His commitment to excellence in the classroom, on the football field, and in his future at Yale reflects the values we strive to instill in all of our students. We are incredibly proud of his accomplishments and excited to see all that he will achieve.”
During the awards ceremony, a highlight video was shown for each honoree. When Schweitzer’s video clips came on the screen, he had a mixture of emotions.
“It was definitely bittersweet,” he said. “There were so many good memories, but I definitely miss it at times already. It was cool to look back and have those memories, especially at a place like Los Gatos.”
Entering his junior year, Schweitzer didn’t exactly have four-year programs knocking at his door. Schweitzer did have a breakout season that fall 2024 season—albeit as a part-time starter—and continued to make rapid improvement in the off-season heading into his senior year.
“Going into the end of my junior year, I thought about the place I was in recruiting where nothing was really happening,” Schweitzer said. “So, I started to think about and break down schools to target. I thought the Ivy League schools were a good target for me, a good fit because of my academics. But if you told me two years ago I’d end up going to Yale, I’d probably look at you and say you were insane.”
The Yale coaching staff reached out to Schweitzer after the first game of the 2025 season, a contest in which Schweitzer threw for 206 yards while running for 63 more. He had five TDs (four passing, one running), a preview for what was to come. The relationship between both parties started to build from there, leading to one of the seminal moments in Schweitzer’s life last October.
That’s when Yale offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Chris Ostrowsky told Schweitzer over the phone that Yale was offering him a spot on the team.
“Being on the phone and receiving that offer was absolutely mind-boggling,” Schweitzer said. “It was an absolute blessing. I was just blown away with the opportunity. It shows what’s possible when you put your head down and work, stay consistent in the classroom and focus on what you can control. When you do those things, the sky’s the limit for anybody.”
Even though Schweitzer had a sense Yale was going to make an offer, reality turned out to be better than anything he could’ve possibly imagined.
“When it actually happened, I was speechless,” said Schweitzer, who committed to Yale on Jan. 5.
After Schweitzer got off the phone with Ostrowsky, he immediately called his parents.
“They were out doing groceries and when I told them, my mom started crying,” Callum said. “And after that, I Facetimed both of my brothers (Will and Tate). That was a really cool moment as well.”
Schweitzer credits his parents, John and Chris, for instilling in him the importance of academics, work ethic and being responsible in all facets of life. Callum’s brothers, Will and Tate, were instrumental in his development in both the physical and mental side of sports.
Will and Tate showed Callum the way, as both played football and excelled academically at LGHS. The intangibles that helped Callum get to this point—grit, perseverance and competitiveness—were in no small part aided by Will and Tate’s influence.
Callum’s brothers pushed him in the best possible way, sharpening both his athletic ability and his mental toughness. Their constant encouragement and competitive edge helped shape Callum’s resilience and drive that defined him on and off the field.
“That’s something I’m grateful for, is the way they pushed me in so many positive ways,” he said. “They’ve always been supportive and are my two best friends. At the end of the day, they are the two guys that will be around my life, hopefully forever. Having good relationships with them is something I cherish very deeply.” While Schweitzer credits his brothers as his best friends and biggest role models, he noted their example set a competitive family dynamic. Determined to match and even surpass the standards Will and Tate set, Callum takes pride he’ll be graduating from LGHS with a superior academic distinction.
“Growing up and always competing with my brothers, and now I get to say I have a better GPA than both of them,” Callum said.
