Notre Dame Was An Easy Snap Judgment For John Shannon

Anonymity is a long snapper’s best friend.

So John Shannon doesn’t mind being Notre Dame’s most overlooked recruit in its 2016 haul. Nobody ever asks who the long snapper is — until he makes an error.

“I hear that all the time,” the 6-2, 235-pound Shannon said. “It’s not as easy as it might look. It takes a lot of repetition and work to execute it right every single time.”

Perfection was Shannon’s job description in his three varsity seasons at state power Loyola Academy in Wilmette, Ill., and at the Chris Rubio Long Snapping Camp that Shannon has frequently attended. Rated as the nation’s No. 1 long snapper by Rubio, Shannon actually is the best bet in Notre Dame’s freshman class to become a four-year starter, although probably not in 2016.

That’s because he underwent labrum surgery on Jan. 18 and is likely to redshirt in 2016 while apprenticing behind fourth-year starter Scott Daly before taking over as the starter from 2017-20.

In 2009, Notre Dame exclusively awarded a four-year scholarship to a long snapper, Jordan Cowart, for the first time ever. The Fighting Irish did it for the second time in 2012 with Cowart’s successor, Daly, who redshirted behind Cowart as a freshman before starting from 2013-15, and is projected to handle the position again as a fifth-year senior in 2016. Shannon is the third.

At the turn of this century, the Irish had relied on walk-ons such as John Crowther, Casey Dunn and J.J. Jansen — who started for the NFC champion Carolina Panthers and had inked a four-year, $3,605,000 contract. Nice work if you’re skilled enough to specialize with it.

Shannon has been plying his trade since the seventh grade, and Loyola Academy head coach John Holecek, an NFL linebacker from 1995-2002, believes a future financial windfall could also occur with Shannon.

“Even watching the NFL games now, John is as fast and proficient as it gets with snapping,” Holecek said. “It’s almost robotic. He has good feet and size, and played at linebacker. I see him making tackles, too, not just standing by like a statue.”

At the Rubio Long Snapping Camp, Shannon had his ball speed for 15 yards measured at 0.59 seconds, which is faster than the college benchmark of 0.75. He did not miss a snap during his three varsity seasons at Loyola Academy, where his teams finished 37-5, highlighted by a 14-0 campaign and Class 8A Illinois state title as a senior. He also started at linebacker before dislocating his shoulder early in his senior season after he had recorded 15 tackles. Limited physically after his injury, Shannon still played in the nickel defense late in the year and recorded an interception in a playoff game.

His grandfather, Dan Shannon, was a co-captain of the 9-1 Notre Dame team in 1954, and his thundering hit on Oklahoma’s Larry Grigg on a kickoff that forced a fumble and set up the Irish winning score in 1952 is one of the program’s more famous plays on special teams.

With his father, Gerard, also a Notre Dame graduate (and mother Elizabeth a St. Mary’s College alum), Shannon admits his decision was “a no-brainer.” He verbally committed to Notre Dame on March 21, 2015, during Junior Day. His first offer had come from West Point.

“It’s like another home to me,” said Shannon, who recalls Notre Dame's epic 2005 battle with No. 1 USC as one of his first games. “My grandfather was very emotional about it because it meant a lot to him to have a third generation attend Notre Dame.

“He was really overjoyed.”

For Shannon, it went well beyond a snap judgment.