Gierula was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania and attended William Allen High School.
[1][2] Gierula attended college at the University of Maryland, where he played football as a guard.
He played on the offensive line alongside Maryland football greats Bob Ward and Dick Modzelewski.
[3] In 1951, Gierula was selected in the tenth round of the 1951 NFL draft by the Cleveland Browns.
In 1954, Gierula (along with Bobby Garrett, John Bauer, and Jack Miller) was traded to the Green Bay Packers for Babe Parilli and Bob Fleck.