DESPITE kicking points in the NFL, Patrick Murray always dreamed of lining out for Monaghan.
Murray attempted to play inter-county football with New York after his American dream ended, but he now says he can pass his ‘specialty’ on in a game more reliant on distance kicking than ever.
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Murray, 31, was the last Irishman to make the NFL grade when he played as kicker and punter for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Cleveland Browns between 2014 and 2017.
Born in New Jersey to a father from Clones, Murray’s first football love was the Gaelic kind with Rockland of New York.
Murray said he ‘imagined running out at St. Tiernach’s Park on Ulster final day’ before he ever envisioned punting field goals in front of 100 thousand people at a college football game.
And his love for Gaelic football, and Monaghan in particular, is as fierce as ever.
Speaking to SunSport, he said: “Thank god for GAAGO, I watch them (Monaghan) as often as I can.
“If they’re playing an early game and my daughter’s not up yet, that’s the first thing I’m doing, turning on GAAGO and watching the lads.”
Murray left the NFL in 2017, in what is a cutthroat business, especially in such a specialized position as his.
After the American dream ended, Murray quickly went back to his first love.
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Murray returned to training with Rockland, and even trained with New York’s inter-county panel last year as the Exiles prepared for their return to the championship in the inaugural Tailteann Cup.
Murray’s boyhood dream of playing county football in Ireland was not to be and it was ultimately put to bed with his move south to Florida for work.
But watching Seán O’Shea’s last gasp free kick for Kerry in Croke Park this summer, Murray realized his kicking attributes are an increasingly critical quality in Gaelic football today.
Murray said his knowledge of pressure kicks is something he is happy to pass on.
“Some of the lads around here playing on the New York college team, or the junior team or the senior team, when I was in training with them I would obviously offer any advice that I possibly could.
“Kicking the ball off the deck is my specialty, so having the opportunity to coach up someone who may have the opportunity to go on and represent New York, that’s a true honor for me and I took pride in being able to do that.”
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“Talk about the mark, catching the ball with the mark and kicking the ball from an awkward angle, these are all things that I have some experience in and something that I was able to offer to the younger guys coming up.”
Despite making a career out of it, Murray does not have any airs and graces about the art of kicking.
He added: “I guess people may have looked at me and said, ‘oh, this guy played in the NFL, he must have the secret sauce’, there is no secret sauce.
“I think some of the things that I’ve experienced, some of the things that I’ve been coached on could be passed on and hopefully be useful to some of the guys making their mark.”
BRIDGING THE GAP
The Irish connection to the NFL often comes through kicking, as the last Irish-born NFL player was Dubliner Neil O’Donoghue who was a placekicker for the Buccs, Bills and Cardinals between 1977 and 1985.
But the long wait for an Irish-born NFL player since O’Donoghue may be coming to an end with Wicklow native Daniel Whelan and Dubliner James McCourt being picked up as undrafted free agents this year.
Whelan was taken by the New Orleans Saints and McCourt by the LA Chargers, and both are, unsurprisingly, kickers.
Murray believes that dialing in on the Irish connection to American football is the key to building the sport in Ireland.
He said: “Knowing that I’ve got this connection to Monaghan, to Clones in particular. Knowing that James (McCourt) has a connection, Irish people want to associate with other Irish people, it’s not that we don’t like anyone else, it’s just that we feel comfortable around each other.
“So building that bridge and building that link is essential for growing the game from America to Ireland.”
Patrick Murray is promoting the Aer Lingus College Football Classic, which will see the Northwestern Wildcats take on the Nebraska Huskers in the Aviva Stadium on Saturday 27th of August.
