John Shannon is a name only the most doe-hard of Notre Dame fans are probably familiar with even though he has played in every Fighting Irish game over the last three seasons.
His most recent game saw him get awarded the game ball because of a huge play he made in determining the victorious outcome at Stanford.
FAMILY.
Our squad couldn’t wait to congratulate @PatrickMannelly Award Finalist John Shannon after he was awarded the gameball after defeating Stanford, 45-24.#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/rXrpkCoBV6
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) December 1, 2019
That wasn’t the only hardware Shannon would bring home in 2019 however as Saturday night he was awarded the inaugural Patrick Mannelly Award for being the best senior long snapper in the nation, edging out Liam McCullough of Ohio State and Steven Wirtel, Iowa State.
The Patrick Mannelly Award would like to congratulate John Shannon of Notre Dame as the first winner of this prestigious award for top FBS Senior Long Snapper!#GoIrish pic.twitter.com/GrWLpvUq6R
— The Patrick Mannelly Long Snapper Award (@MannellyAward) December 15, 2019
Taken from the official award website is the following:
Long Snappers don’t make the cover of the program. They’re rarely asked to sign autographs. You don’t typically see them being interviewed before the game. But Long Snappers aren’t driven by these things. Quiet, selfless, focused and courageous, the Long Snapper is content to trade conventional superstardom for the opportunity to do one job very well. – PatrickMannellyAward.com
Upon reading that I find it fitting Shannon won the award on Saturday of all days. Just hours earlier Brian Kelly announced that Shannon would be passing up his fifth year of eligibility at Notre Dame. It wasn’t because he is trying to make it on an NFL roster, however, it’s because he’s beginning his career in law enforcement.