A second-team All-American by the Helms Foundation in 1948, Gale played at Cornell before committing to training school for U.S. military officers and transferring to Dartmouth, where he helped the Big Green to the 1944 NCAA tournamemtn finals. At the end of World War II, he returned to Cornell and served as captain for two seasons, helping head coach Royner Greene's team to a 30-17 record. He averaged 14.4 points as a junior and 16.7 points as a senior for the Big Red. Gale was a two-time first-team all-EIBL selection and was selected in the first round of the 1948 Basketball Association of America draft, a forerunner of the NBA, as the seventh overall pick by the St. Louis Bombers.
