Daniel Matthew O'Brien (born September 26, 1990) is an American
assistant coach with the
BC Lions
The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place.
The Lions played their first season ...
of the
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...
(CFL). As a professional
quarterback
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
, he had been a member of the
Columbus Lions
The Columbus Lions are a professional indoor football team based in Columbus, Georgia and are a member of the American Indoor Football Alliance. The were a founding member of the National Arena League (NAL) for the 2017 season. The Lions were f ...
,
Ottawa Redblacks
The Ottawa Redblacks (officially stylized as REDBLACKS) ( French: Le Rouge et Noir d'Ottawa) are a professional Canadian football team based in Ottawa, Ontario. The team plays in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL).
Startin ...
,
Edmonton Eskimos
The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at the Brick Field at Commo ...
, and BC Lions. He played college football for the
University of Maryland
The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...
,
University of Wisconsin
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
and
Catawba College
Catawba College is a private college in Salisbury, North Carolina. Founded in 1851 by the North Carolina Classis of the Reformed Church in Newton, the college adopted its name from its county of origin, Catawba County, before moving to its c ...
.
Early years
O'Brien was born in
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
, and at the age of 12, moved to
Kernersville, North Carolina
Kernersville is a town in Forsyth County and the largest suburb of Winston-Salem. The town is located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. A small portion of the town is also in Guilford County. The population was 26,481 at the 2020 census, u ...
, where he attended
East Forsyth High School.
[ During his interscholastic career, he played ]basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
and football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
as a quarterback
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
.[ As a junior in 2007, he completed 151 of 248 pass attempts for 1,905 yards and 15 ]touchdown
A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...
s and rushed
''Rushed'' is a 2021 American mystery thriller drama film directed by Vibeke Muasya and starring Siobhan Fallon Hogan (who also wrote the screenplay and co-produced the film) and Robert Patrick.
Plot
Barbara O’Brien, an Irish-Catholic mother i ...
for 290 yards and seven touchdowns.[ As a senior, he completed 117 of 235 pass attempts for 1,640 yards and 16 touchdowns and six ]interception
In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team b ...
s and had 160 rushing attempts for 780 yards and 11 touchdowns.[ That season, he led his team to the Metro 4A conference championship and the third round of the state playoffs.][Player Bio: Danny O'Brien]
University of Maryland, retrieved November 27, 2010.
Rivals.com
Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel.
History
Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...
rated him a three-star college prospect and ranked him the 36th best quarterback in the nation and 35th best player in the state of North Carolina.[Danny O'Brien]
Rivals.com, Yahoo! Sports, retrieved November 27, 2010. Scout.com
Scout Media is an integrated sports publishing company that produces Internet content covering hundreds of professional and college teams across America. The company was founded in 2001 and was acquired by Fox Sports in 2005. In 2013, Fox Sports ...
also rated him a three-star prospect.[Danny O'Brien Profile]
Scout.com, retrieved November 27, 2010. Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
, North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
, North Carolina State
North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universit ...
, Notre Dame, Wake Forest, and Virginia Tech
Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...
showed interest in O'Brien, and Duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...
, East Carolina
East Carolina University (ECU) is a public research university in Greenville, North Carolina. It is the fourth largest university in North Carolina.
Founded on March 8, 1907, as a teacher training school, East Carolina has grown from its orig ...
, and Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
offered him an athletic scholarship
An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the United Stat ...
.[
]
College career
Maryland
O'Brien enrolled at the University of Maryland in the fall of 2009 but was redshirted
Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...
and did not see playing time that year. O'Brien entered the 2010 season as the backup quarterback behind Jamarr Robinson. He saw his first action in the season opener against Navy
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
, losing a fumble on his only play of the game. In the second game of the season, O'Brien saw his first serious action against Morgan State. Up 24–0 in the second quarter, O'Brien capitalized by throwing 3 touchdowns in his first four passes before giving way to third string Quarterback, C.J. Brown in the 62–3 win. Against West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...
, O'Brien again only saw one play of action, getting sacked for a five-yard loss. Robinson's sore arm moved O'Brien into the starting role against Florida International. In the first start of his college career, O'Brien passed for 250 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. O'Brien shattered all significant Freshman quarterback records at the University of Maryland, passing for 2,438 yards and 22 touchdowns. In addition, he rushed for a twelve-yard touchdown against Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
and collected a four-yard touchdown reception against Clemson. During the 2010 season, the Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...
named O'Brien the ACC Rookie of the Week a total of five times. Upon the conclusion of the season, he was named the ACC Rookie of the Year.[Friedgen, O'Brien Honored by the ACC Friedgen earns league's coach of the year award for the second time; O'Brien first-ever Terp rookie of the year](_blank)
, University of Maryland, November 30, 2010. O'Brien was the first Maryland player to ever receive the honor. The Football Writers Association of America
The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) is an organization of college football media members in the United States founded in 1941. It is composed of approximately 1,200 professional sports writers from both print and Internet media out ...
named O'Brien to its Freshman All-America team.
Wisconsin
On February 13, 2012, O'Brien announced he would be transferring from the University of Maryland. O'Brien announced on March 28 that he would transfer to the University of Wisconsin, and on August 20 he was named the starter for Wisconsin's season opener against the Northern Iowa Panthers
The Northern Iowa Panthers are the athletic teams of the University of Northern Iowa. The university is a member of the Missouri Valley Conference and competes in NCAA Division I (Division I FCS in football).
History
The school's mascot is t ...
. On September 20, Wisconsin head coach Bret Bielema
Bret Arnold Bielema (; born January 13, 1970) is currently the head American football coach at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Bielema served as the head football coach at of the University of Wisconsin–Madison from 2006 to 2012 ...
replaced O'Brien with redshirt freshman Joel Stave, citing problems with turnovers. After Stave suffered a season-ending injury during the October 27 game against the Michigan State Spartans
The Michigan State Spartans are the athletic teams that represent Michigan State University. The school's athletic program includes 23 varsity sports teams. Their mascot is a Spartan warrior named Sparty, and the school colors are green and wh ...
, O'Brien remained the backup behind fifth-year senior Curt Phillips.
Catawba College
On June 10, 2013, it was announced that O'Brien would not be returning to Wisconsin and would instead seek another school for his remaining year of eligibility. It was later announced that O'Brien transferred to Catawba College
Catawba College is a private college in Salisbury, North Carolina. Founded in 1851 by the North Carolina Classis of the Reformed Church in Newton, the college adopted its name from its county of origin, Catawba County, before moving to its c ...
. During his 2013 season with Catawba, O'Brien started ten games while passing for 2,490 yards with 15 touchdowns and six interceptions. The team finished with a 6–5 record. O'Brien also played in the 2014 Medal of Honor Bowl
The Medal of Honor Bowl was an American college football all-star game played in Charleston, South Carolina, in January 2014 and 2015. The bowl was not sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Primary beneficiaries of th ...
, a postseason all-star game
An all-star game is an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or div ...
, passing for 87 yards (5-for-11) and rushing for a touchdown.
Statistics
Sources: [Danny O'Brien Stats](_blank)
ESPN, retrieved 01 April 1, 2012.
Professional career
After being undrafted in 2014, he was offered a tryout at rookie minicamp with the Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...
. However, O'Brien was not signed.
Columbus Lions
On May 27, 2014, O'Brien signed with the Columbus Lions
The Columbus Lions are a professional indoor football team based in Columbus, Georgia and are a member of the American Indoor Football Alliance. The were a founding member of the National Arena League (NAL) for the 2017 season. The Lions were f ...
of the Professional Indoor Football League
The Professional Indoor Football League (PIFL) was a professional indoor football league that played four seasons from 2012 to 2015. Like the Lone Star Football League, the PIFL was mainly composed of teams formerly part of Southern Indoor Foot ...
(PIFL).
Ottawa Redblacks
On the day before his first game for the Lions, O'Brien signed with the Ottawa Redblacks
The Ottawa Redblacks (officially stylized as REDBLACKS) ( French: Le Rouge et Noir d'Ottawa) are a professional Canadian football team based in Ottawa, Ontario. The team plays in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL).
Startin ...
of the CFL on May 31, 2014. O'Brien was placed on the exempt list for the PIFL, and began the season as the third QB on the Redblacks depth chart. A season-ending injury to second-string quarterback Thomas DeMarco
Thomas DeMarco (born January 16, 1989) is a former professional Canadian football quarterback. He played for the BC Lions, Ottawa Redblacks and the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League (CFL).
College career College of the Desert
De ...
allowed O'Brien to see action during the 2014 CFL season
Fourteen or 14 may refer to:
* 14 (number), the natural number following 13 and preceding 15
* one of the years 14 BC, AD 14, 1914, 2014
Music
* 14th (band), a British electronic music duo
* ''14'' (David Garrett album), 2013
*''14'', an unrele ...
. Danny O'Brien played in eight games in his first season in the CFL, receiving significant playing time in two of those games. He would finish the season completing 29 of 54 passing attempts for 421 yards, with 2 touchdowns and 5 interceptions (53.1 passer rating).
Edmonton Eskimos
After winning the Grey Cup with the Redblacks in 2016, O'Brien signed with Edmonton Eskimos for the 2017 CFL season
The 2017 CFL season was the 64th season of modern-day Canadian football. Officially, it was the 60th season of the Canadian Football League. The regular season began on June 22 and concluded on November 4. The playoffs commenced on November 12 an ...
, reuniting him with former offensive coordinator and Edmonton Head Coach Jason Maas
Jason Maas (born November 19, 1975) is the head coach of the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and a former Canadian football quarterback in the CFL. He is best known for his playing career with the Edmonton Eskimos where h ...
, and replacing the retired Jordan Lynch
Jordan Lynch (born October 3, 1990) is a former American football quarterback and running back. After playing college football at Northern Illinois, where he was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy in 2013, and going undrafted in the 2014 NFL Draft, ...
as the third quarterback, as well as holder for convert kicks and field goals. On August 11, 2018, O'Brien completed his first pass in nearly two years, on a fake field goal to defensive tackle Almondo Sewell
Almondo Sewell (born January 16, 1987) is a professional gridiron football defensive tackle for the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at the University of Akron and attended Hargrave Military ...
. By the season's end he had completed four out of five passes for 44 yards; his one incompletion was an intercepted Hail Mary pass
A Hail Mary pass is a very long forward pass in American football, typically made in desperation, with an exceptionally small chance of achieving a completion. Due to the difficulty of a completion with this pass, it makes reference to the Catho ...
in at the end of a game. After going 15 of 26 for 93 yards in two preseason games to begin the 2019 season, and failing to produce a scoring drive, Logan Kilgore
Logan Kilgore (born May 24, 1990) is a former quarterback with the Canadian Football League from 2015 to 2019. Kilgore made his professional debut in 2016 for the Toronto Argonauts and remained with the Argonauts until 2017. He also spent a year ...
won the backup job and O'Brien was released. When asked about O'Brien's release, Edmonton kicker, Sean Whyte simply replied, "It sucks". O'Brien was the final member of the previous season's quarterback room to leave the team in 2019.
BC Lions
Following the preseason, O'Brien was reunited with Mike Reilly as his backup when he signed with the BC Lions
The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place.
The Lions played their first season ...
. After Reilly suffered a season ending injury near the end of the regular season O'Brien made his starting debut for the Lions in Week 19 in a losing effort against the Saskatchewan Roughriders
The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division.
The Roughriders were founded in 1 ...
. In the game O'Brien completed 16 of 25 pass attempts for 171 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He retired during the following off-season.
References
External links
Ottawa RedBlacks bio
ESPN profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Obrien, Danny
1990 births
Living people
American football quarterbacks
Canadian football quarterbacks
Catawba Indians football players
Maryland Terrapins football players
Wisconsin Badgers football players
People from Kernersville, North Carolina
Players of American football from Minneapolis
Columbus Lions players
Ottawa Redblacks players
Edmonton Elks players
American players of Canadian football
BC Lions players
BC Lions coaches
Sports coaches from Minneapolis
Players of Canadian football from Minnesota