Patrick O'Connell (American football)
[3] He left Mary, and gave up his athletic scholarship and baseball career in 2018 to join the Montana Grizzlies football team as a walk-on.[7] As a junior in 2021, he broke out, and became a top NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) player, recording 105 tackles, 22 tackles-for-loss and 14 sacks while being named first-team All-Big Sky Conference and first-team All-American, additionally finishing third in voting for the Buck Buchanan Award, given to the best defensive player in the FCS.[2] That year, he missed three games from injury, but managed to still be a first-team All-Big Sky player with a conference-leading eight sacks and 14 tackles-for-loss, along with 73 tackles.[3][7][8] O'Connell ended his stint at Montana being fourth all-time in school history for tackles for loss, and placed sixth in sacks; he was invited to the Hula Bowl to conclude his collegiate career.[10] He was second on the team in preseason for tackles with 17, but was released at the final roster cuts, subsequently being re-signed to the practice squad.