Home Australia Eddie McGuire’s son opens up about playing in footy game watched by more than 25 MILLION fans – and he’ll be facing the son of an AFL great

Eddie McGuire’s son opens up about playing in footy game watched by more than 25 MILLION fans – and he’ll be facing the son of an AFL great

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Eddie McGuire will play to a crowd that dwarfs the AFL grand final audience when he competes in the biggest game in US college football on Tuesday.

Two fellow Aussies with AFL pedigree have been texting ahead of their rivalry in one of the biggest games in American sport.

Joe McGuire, son of AFL personality Eddie McGuire, and James Rendell, son of the late Fitzroy great Matthew Rendell, are on opposite sides in the pinnacle fixture of American college football.

McGuire is Ohio State’s punter and Rendell plays the same role at Notre Dame, and the two famous universities will meet for the national championship on Tuesday morning Australian time.

The match was watched by 25 million Americans last year and American-born Collingwood ruckman Mason Cox described the contest as a “mini Super Bowl that’s much bigger than the AFL grand final”.

‘It’s fantastic. It’s unreal,” McGuire said.

“We actually went to (AFL) football together in April, I think it might have been Collingwood-Carlton, I was sitting with him through that whole game.

Eddie McGuire will play to a crowd that dwarfs the AFL grand final audience when he competes in the biggest game in US college football on Tuesday.

The Ohio State punter (pictured with his famous father Eddie and John Travolta) will take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the biggest college football game of the year.

The Ohio State punter (pictured with his famous father Eddie and John Travolta) will take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the biggest college football game of the year.

‘We’ve been messaging each other all year.

And then obviously in the last few weeks we’ve been texting each other a couple of times, like, “Gee, buddy, we might see each other at the big one.”

“And every week we both kept winning.”

They are both 24 years old, both from Melbourne and grew up around Australian rules football.

Eddie McGuire is a former Collingwood president and the modern AFL’s biggest media identity; Matthew Rendell was Fitzroy captain and two-time Australian player before becoming assistant coach and recruiter until his death in June 2023.

James Rendell was a promising junior in Australian rules, playing for Victoria Metro at the under 18 national championships in 2018, while Joe McGuire played in the amateur ranks.

“One of the only good things about my game of (Australian rules) football was that I could kick a ball decently; when I actually got it, I could do something good with it,” McGuire said.

McGuire's counterpart at Notre Dame is James Rendell (pictured), who has an excellent pedigree in the AFL, courtesy of his father.

McGuire’s counterpart at Notre Dame is James Rendell (pictured), who has an excellent pedigree in the AFL, courtesy of his father.

During COVID times, one of McGuire’s teammates suggested he try punting, which led him to contact Prokick Australia, formed in 2007 by former AFL player Nathan Chapman to train and transition Australians to football. American.

Chapman invited McGuire to what the emerging athlete thought was a fluke punt.

“I went to a local park and played with Chappy, but I didn’t realize it was actually a tryout because it’s a selective organization,” McGuire said.

McGuire was invited to Prokick, Rendell arrived later to join a procession of Australian punters on Chapman’s show.

Around 270 punters have received full scholarships in the US through Prokick Australia; His alumni include three bettors who played in the NFL Super Bowl and eight winners of the college bettor of the year award.

“I was training at Prokick for about two years, so it was something I really dedicated my life to,” McGuire said.

‘I wasn’t trying to go to university and just play a bit of football. I was going to go to an elite school and do the best I could.’

McGuire left in late July 2023 for Ohio State, which wanted him as a backup to Jesse Mirco, another Australian punter who would leave the university at the end of the season.

“When you put so much time into something and you’re all in, it was a little bit of a relief that I finally got the opportunity, and also excitement,” McGuire said.

“There was a little bit of, ‘Wow, I’m moving to the Midwest, I haven’t been to the Midwest, I don’t know anyone.'”

“I talked to Jesse once or twice and he turned out to be unreal, just a fantastic mentor. He has a great opportunity to go to the NFL this year, so I’m really excited for him.”

Rendell (left) is pictured with his late father Matt (second from left), who played 164 games for Fitzroy in a top-flight career that lasted from 1977 to 1992.

Rendell (left) is pictured with his late father Matt (second from left), who played 164 games for Fitzroy in a top-flight career that lasted from 1977 to 1992.

When Mirco left Ohio State, McGuire found himself in a three-way competition for the starting punter’s job: against another Melbourne native, Nick McLarty, and a Canadian.

“The other two guys have incredible legs, they’re very good punters, but my consistency was what they said got me over the line,” McGuire said.

His debut with the Buckeyes last September was his first genuine football game, in a competition renowned for its passionate rivalries: in 11 of the 15 games this season, he played in front of more than 100,000 people.

“It’s like nothing else,” McGuire said of college football’s privileged place in American sports.

‘As it is the university, all the alumni and students also really feel part of it… it’s very tribal.

‘It’s similar to the passion behind the AFL in a sense, but sometimes I would say even more so, because everyone feels part of the organisation.

“It’s so different to anything in Australia…university sport really creates camaraderie and everyone would live and die for university, they love it.”

The sophomore must pass his studies in business, media and sports to remain eligible to play; could potentially earn a master’s degree, if the NFL doesn’t come calling.

“If I can become the player that I hope and believe I can, the ultimate goal would be to go to the NFL for sure,” McGuire said.

For now, McGuire, who also fills the pressure position by taking the snap and holding the ball for field goals, has set his sights on punting well in the championship game in Atlanta.

“A lot of times they’ll say (the punt) is the most important play in football because if it goes wrong, it results in a touchdown,” he said.

“And if it goes well, you can really change the field and put the defense in a good position and make the other team’s offense pretty uncomfortable.”

‘They often say that your punting team isn’t going to win you a game but it can certainly lose you one.

‘If I do my job, no one notices me. If I don’t do it, then it’s not a good thing and everyone looks at me.’

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