Kerry's David Shanahan included in Georgia Tech ranks to face Florida State 

HOME SOIL: Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets punter David Shanahan during a practice session at Lansdowne RFC in Dublin ahead of the 2024 Aer Lingus College Football Classic match between Florida State and Georgia Tech this Saturday at Aviva Stadium in Dublin. Picture: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile

For their grand return to the Aviva Stadium later on today to face Florida State in the latest edition of the Aer Lingus College Football Classic (kick-off 5pm), Georgia Tech will have amongst their ranks a man who has a strong familiarity with this part of the world.

A native of Castleisland in Kerry, David Shanahan created his own slice of history back in May 2020 when it was revealed he was to become the first player born and raised in Ireland to take on a football college career in the States. While the covid-19 pandemic meant it was another 12 months until he officially began his scholarship in Georgia – he was initially set to arrive there in January of that year – Shanahan played his first game of American football for the side commonly known as the Yellow Jackets against Northern Illinois on September 4, 2021.