From GAA to gridiron: The Derry, Kerry and Laois trio in the US (2024)

What did people think when you told them you’d got a scholarship to play American football?

Jude McAtamney: They didn't really believe you at the start! When David came out with his scholarship announcement first, everyone was thinking, 'Where did this come from?' because no one else had done it before.

Ross Bolger: People back home would have thought it's similar to Ireland where you get your picture taken and €500. They didn't realise how big of a deal it was.

What were your expectations of US college life?

David Shanahan: It is completely paid for. I could have come over here with zero money. I don't think anything really prepared me for how serious football is, the scheduling of it, having to go from practice to gym, to class, to meetings.

RB: I just rocked up, met about 100 guys at once and was straight into a fall training camp where positions are decided in a month's time. I was a novelty at the start of my time.

Did you have to battle for a starting place when you joined the team?

JM: I started in my first season at Rutgers, doing kick offs and field goals. In my second, I lost the field goal job. You're here to do a job and if you don't do it, they will replace you.

RB:When they offered me the scholarship, I was told you're not guaranteed a starting spot. It's best man wins. It doesn't matter if the guy beside you is on scholarship or not. I ended up winning the punting job but didn't win the kicking job because I arrived late.

DS: When I arrived, they had a transfer, a punter from UCLA. That first fall camp, I was competing with him. Two weeks before the first game, I was the first choice. You only get six or seven reps a day in that training camp where everything gets decided.

None of you had played a proper competitive game before joining these teams. What was that first one like?

RB: It was about trying to get in the mentality all week that this is actually happening. When I finally got on the field for that first punt, it was the most nervous I ever was for one. One of the players bumped me after I kicked but I got it off and it was a good ball.

DS:In practice, they're not coming to hit you. In games, they're trying to take your head off.

JM: In Gaelic football you can make a mistake and then the next minute, you're on the ball and you can make up for it. In this, you could get one chance a game or seven. The biggest adjustment was how well you had to focus on the sideline in between plays because the games last three-and-a-half to four hours.

Have you had to make many tackles?

RB: I got two assisted tackles. I was the second man there, jumping in on the pile. I thought from my rugby background that I'd be alright with getting stuck in. It's just about trying to get the angles right and at least slow them down.

DS: I made one this year and one in my sophom*ore year. I hope that number doesn't grow. If I'm ever in a position where I've got to tackle, either I've messed up or some in front of me messed up.

Has anything surprised you about the experience?

RB: The sheer scale of college football. Where I am, everyone lives for it, we're the biggest deal in town. You have to be careful to not make a fool of yourself and go too mad on nights out. Even locals, they'd know you as the Irish punter.

DS: The level of athlete that they have over here is unbelievable. When I was in Ireland, I would have considered myself pretty athletic and fast but then I come over here and I'm so far off the pace. The sheer size of them, we don't really make humans like that in Ireland! The hardest part is having to have that relentless consistency. You have one good game, you're feeling pretty good and then you realise that you've got to go to practice on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and then deliver again on Saturday. It's about getting used to the mental toll. You are locked in from the start of September to playing a Bowl game in the last week of December.

JM: Last year against Michigan, we were leading 10-7 at one stage and doing really well. Then our quarterback threw a pick, they ran it to the house for a touchdown. There was 109,000 people there that day. The whole stadium completely erupted. We were laughing on the sideline. We couldn't hear anything. It'd nearly burst your eardrums.

What’s been the highlight so far?

RB: My parents came out towards the end of the year. They've invested a lot in me. Getting to play in front of them and them meeting the team was a cool experience.

JM: We played in the Pinstripe Bowl game in New York in late December. That build up in the city was a lot of fun. Then getting to play in Yankee Stadium was a cool experience.

DS: The biggest one was playing North Carolina last season. It was a night game, our homecoming weekend and they were 10th or 12th in the country and we beat them. The whole stadium was packed out and they all rushed the field afterwards. My parents, sister and brother were there.

What's next?

McAtamney signed with the New York Giants in April and made his debut for the team in a pre-season game against the Detroit Lions earlier this month. Both Bolger and Shanahan have one more season of college football to play. Neither are thinking too far ahead. Nor are they placing all their chips on the NFL.

"I moved my credits around to graduate next December," Bolger explained.

"I'll be finishing up with the school aspect a few week after the season ends. After that we'll see what happens. There are so many leagues around the world - it's not NFL or bust."