Concord’s Seamus McIntyre played soccer his whole life. He was a strong center for the Bishop Brady soccer team. His decision to pick up football three years ago changed his life.
McIntyre, who played his last two years of football at the New Hampton School, committed to the University of Massachusetts Minutemen next year as a kicker and special teams player earlier this week.
Multiple programs, including Michigan, Syracuse, Bryant, and Buffalo, vied for his commitment as he was ranked as high as the 15th-best kicker in his recruiting class. The biggest factor in his decision was how the UMass coaching staff treated him, especially special teams coach Joe Castellitto.
“Coach Castellitto is one of the best in the country. He came from Dartmouth and the way he treats his players, and whatnot, is the kind of coach I can get behind and support,” McIntyre said.
He transferred and reclassified after joining New Hampton School and played tight end, linebacker, kicker and punter for the Huskies. He basically never stepped off the field.
McIntyre had the strength to play on the gridiron. His tall and wide stature made him great for battling in the box in soccer, and many of those skills transferred over into his defensive and offensive play.
However, his ability to kick the ball in soccer is what ultimately earned him a Division 1 offer. McIntyre said he could hit an in-game field goal from as far as 50 yards, but in practice with no pads, his furthest is around 72 yards.
The Concord native spent countless hours, kicking and kicking and kicking again. He traveled to multiple camps to measure up against some of the best in the country.
His mother, Erin McIntyre, is thrilled he’ll be staying close so the family can go watch games, but she’s also glad her son found the right fit and environment.
“This kid dedicates himself to this. He is out for hours, he has dug out the snow to go kick in the snow,” she said.
McIntyre said he’s ready for the pressure that comes with being a kicker full-time.
It will be an adjustment from his on-field role with the Huskies, but he’s excited to join a group of big, physical special teamers at UMass. And he’s ready to have the outcome of a game rest on his shoulders, or more aptly, his foot.
“I love it,” McIntyre said about the new pressure he’ll face. “I tell my parents, like the big games, did you see the Giants game the other day? I was like, ‘Damn, if they gave me that shot, they’d never take me off.”