Hi Gaby,
You can connect to the device without loading any code on it. Under Mneu File go to New -> Target file configuration. Select the emulator and the device in the fields and save the target configuration. Now go to View -> Target configurations. You should see the configuration you created in the View. Right click on the target configuration and launch the target configuration. Power on the device and then connect to the core. This should show you the state of the device after it tries to boot. Then follow the process of loading the debug GEL file as shown here:
http://processors.wiki.ti.com/index.php/OMAP-L1x_Debug_Gel_Files
Regards,
Rahul