Ireland’s next NFL hope? NFL Academy product Andy Quinn commits to Boston College | NFL News

College football just delivered a timely trailer for one of the sport’s most unique, intense and pyrotechnic-filled stages as rivalry week brought plenty of brawling and brilliance. It is an experience like no other.

The night before NFL Academy’s Andy Quinn committed his college future to Boston College on Wednesday, a dramatic weekend was in store. This experience will soon be his.

“I can’t wait for the atmosphere on match day. College football is really special, it doesn’t even really exist in the NFL,” Quinn tells Sky Sports NFL.

“Everyone is so loyal to their college and has the opportunity to play against the teams we play next year. It would be incredible if I was chosen to play. We’re playing the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in Boston, it’s going to be great.” A crazy game that will sell out the entire stadium.

“We play at home against Clemson, Georgia Tech, and Syracuse, Stanford. When you see the list of places I’ll be traveling to and playing against, it’s really exciting.”

Quinn grew up playing rugby and his footballing journey began at halftime of the 2022 Aer Lingus College Football Classic between Northwestern and Nebraska at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, where he was crowned Ireland’s Kicking King after winning a field goal contest.

He had secured his spot in the final three from an initial group of 180 before hitting two 45-yard field goals in front of 43,000 fans. Talk about the perfect audition for dealing with pressure environments.

“Coach Hagen (NFL Academy Head Coach Steve Hagen) and Khris Durham (Head of Football) saw this 16-year-old kicking in front of 43,000 people and said, ‘We’ve got to get him to the NFL Academy,’ and that was it.” Like that started my football career.

“I ended up being crowned Kicking King of Ireland and won a flight to Chicago. And to be honest, I thought all the luck would end with the flights to Chicago, but that wasn’t the case. I went on to the NFL Academy.”

“I think I still don’t fully understand how much that moment changed my life. I was lucky that a camera crew was there and documented the whole experience.”

Quinn then attended Kohl’s Kicking Academy in Philadelphia, followed by a camp in Tennessee in July of that year, before being ranked the fourth-best punter prospect in the United States and the 12th-best kicker.

“It was really so late (that I realized college football was a possibility), and then I got my offer from Boston College in September, went on my official visit and committed on my official visit.”

“It all worked out really well, and in a short space of time, because in April I finished my diploma and was ready to go to college in Dublin. I didn’t think it would be possible to go to America in April.”

NFL Academy member Peter Clarke, now at Temple University, previously spoke about the generous treatment he received during college visits as programs rolled out the red carpet to secure the services of prospects.

It was no different for Quinn as Boston College officials paraded him and his family around town to sign their next star kicker.

“They flew me, my mom and my dad from Dublin to Boston and we were picked up by the buses at the airport and taken straight to lunch – that’s a lot of fodder!” Quinn added.

“I ate caviar for the first time when I was there, it’s crazy. The trainers try to show you the beautiful places in Boston, it’s also a nice experience for them, so they take you to their favorite restaurants and you can talk to people who will be really important in the next four years of your studies become.

“I met head coach Bill O’Brien when I walked into the facility. They really care about you and the hotel we stayed at was incredible. They leave a lot of things on the bed – like letters from coaches, etc.” . It was a really cool experience that you will never experience again.

“They made Boston feel like home.”

Boston has one of the largest Irish populations in the United States, which only reinforces Quinn’s immediate sense of home.

“The amount of Irish connections there is really nice when you’re away from home,” Quinn said. “It’s kind of like a second home.”

“It’s only a six-hour flight to Ireland, obviously that’s not the only reason they recruited me, but it was also a huge advantage.”

Quinn has already worked for some time with Irish kicker Charlie Smyth, who currently has a spot in the New Orleans Saints’ training ranks after leaving Gaelic football earlier this year to join the NFL’s International Player Pathway Program.

Derry man Jude McAtamney also plays for the New York Giants and is another IPP product, while Dan Whelan, from Enniskerry, County Wicklow, is in the Green Bay Packers squad as more Irish talent emerges with a path to the NFL strive for.

“I trained with Charlie a few times when he was preparing for IPP and he was learning the game at the same time, so we learn pretty well from each other. Two weeks ago I met McAtamney.” .

“They gave me some good advice and information. The one thing I really liked is the consistency and calm that Jude shows and his demeanor, that’s kind of the key.”

“Any kicker can hit a 55-yard field goal, but it’s the kickers who do it under pressure and in the moment.”

Quinn is admittedly “obsessive” by nature, and his meticulous attention to the fine details of his craft helps him on his whirlwind journey. He hopes that if he continues to work tirelessly towards his development, his ascension will continue seamlessly upon his arrival in Boston.

“When I played rugby, I was on the pitch for about three or four hours during the COVID-19 crisis just kicking because I was obsessed with it,” he said.

“I watched a documentary about Jonny Wilkinson and he felt pretty similar. He became possessed and couldn’t leave when there was a bad kick and stayed outside until it got dark. So yes, I have an obsessive streak in me.”

“But I think even when you get to games and games, you also have to put that behind you a little bit and just be in the moment and trust yourself where you’ve worked so hard that you just reach a flow state and. “Be fluid.”

It has become an unlikely dream and venture not only for Quinn, but also for his family, who are now also in the process of educating themselves about the US college structure.

“They’re learning every day, just like the American education system, they’re constantly learning about it,” Quinn said.

“They just see it as a huge opportunity to first get an American education and then also play in some of the biggest stadiums in America and have the experience of being kind of a semi-professional athlete, or at least in a professional environment.”

“This experience will shape me for the rest of my life. So I’m really grateful for that and my family is really grateful for the opportunity that I have.”

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