A sold-out Aviva Stadium hosted a thrilling opening game to kick off this year’s NCAA college championship season in Dublin. In an Atlantic Coast Conference game between Georgia Tech and Florida State, the 10th-ranked Seminoles lost 24-21 on a last-second field goal.

The game was played on neutral ground for all but one player involved. It’s not often that a punter is the center of attention in the buildup to a play, but in David Shanahan, Georgia Tech has a player who is making history.

Three years ago, Shanahan, from Castleisland in County Kerry, became the first Irishman ever to receive a full scholarship to play college football.

The cheers from the nearly 50,000 spectators for Shanahan’s punts were among the loudest of the night, even though he is now in his senior year.

The special teams also showed outstanding performances in this game: FSU kicker Ryan Fitzgerald, who impressed with two field goals from long distance, and Aidan Birr of Georgia Tech, who kept his nerve and scored the decisive goal.

The contest had started gloomily for Shanahan’s team, which had no answer to Florida State’s running game on its first possession.

A 28-yard touchdown run by Lawrence Toafili capped a seven-play, 75-yard drive by the Seminoles. Georgia Tech responded well, however, and quarterback Zach Pyron stormed through for a touchdown to cap a quick six-play drive.

Shanahan was first used late in the first quarter after Georgia Tech’s second drive of the game stalled. The Kerry man placed a tactical 44-yard punt at the FSU 25-yard line.

The Seminoles had to settle for a field goal on their next drive; Fitzgerald landed a 45-yard attempt.

The Yellow Jackets took a 14-11 lead when running back Jamal Haynes stormed into the end zone three minutes before halftime, but FSU still had time to get within field goal range – Fitzgerald sank a monster 59-yard attempt to tie the teams at halftime at 14-14.

After halftime, Shanahan’s second punt of the night went 49 yards and returned just three yards after both sides stalled on their first drives of the second half.

The next point came early in the fourth quarter when Haynes found the end zone to make it 21-14. The Seminoles were now forced to chase the game and attempted a fourth-and-7 attempt at the Georgia Tech 20-yard line.

Quarterback DJ Uiagalelei showed great composure and threw a 19-yard pass to wide receiver Malik Benson – and Roydell Williams’ subsequent one-yard run into the end zone made the score 21-21.

In the finale, Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King led his team on a thrilling 14-play drive from Georgia Tech’s 25-yard line to field goal range. Kicker Aidan Burr made the game-winning kick from 44 yards, drawing cheers from Georgia fans and the many locals who supported Shanahan’s team.

The Irish connection to American football has never been stronger, not only among the fans enjoying the spectacle tonight, but also on the field.

In addition to Shanahan’s groundbreaking college career, recent years have also seen Wicklow native Dan Whelan secure the spot as punter for the Green Bay Packers, while kickers Jude McAtamney and Charlie Smyth look to earn a spot on the first team for the New York Giants and New Orleans Saints, respectively, as the NFL preseason concludes this weekend.

The prospect of a regular season NFL game being played in Dublin remains strong. The NFL recently confirmed that Ireland is “being considered as a future host venue and the NFL is in the early exploratory phase of that feasibility process.”