Ulster's Aaron Sexton has made the decision to quit rugby and join the NFL’s 2025 International Player Pathway Program [IPP].
The speedy back has not featured for the province under Richie Murphy this season and will look for a fresh start in the United States in the new year.
The IPP looks to identify global talent, with the aim of providing elite athletes the opportunity to develop their skills in American Football.
Irish athletes such as Monaghan’s Rory Beggan and Wicklow’s Mark Jackson took part in the NFL's International Player Pathway earlier this year, impressing with their kicking abilities at the NFL Combine, alongside former rugby player Darragh Leader and Down’s Charlie Smyth, who was signed to the New Orleans Saints roster.
Sexton, 24, has decided to transfer his skills after showing athletic prowess from a young age. At just 16, he won a national sprint championship, before focussing on rugby, signing his first professional contract at 18.
Originally from Bangor, he was a standout schoolboy sprinter in both the 100m and 200m events. Sexton joined the Ulster academy after just missing out on a medal in the 200m at the 2019 European Under-20 Championships.
Since joining Ulster in 2019, he has represented the Ireland Sevens team, and accumulated ten senior appearances by the start of the 2024/25 season.
Sexton will go in a different pathway to that of kickers like Smyth, working out as a wide receiver/returner.
He said: "Around four or five years ago now, when I was still sprinting and seeing DK Metcalf (Seahawks wide receiver) race. I was at the US trials, where he was racing sprinters.
"He ran 10.34 and I was running 10.43, so I know that I have got the speed.
"I'm just champing at the bit right now. I'm running in a park on my own, doing my drills, doing my homework.
"Obviously, I do know I still have a lot to grow and a lot to learn. But yeah, I'm looking to go out, enjoy it and perform."
The emergence of Louis Rees-Zammit through the 2024 IPP class was a huge factor in Sexton giving the transition a chance. The Welshman is currently on the Jacksonville Jaguars practice squad, after initially signing with the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.
"With Rees-Zammit, that was a big move when he went and we would have followed it last year when he was going," he said.
"Even over the past couple of years, I've always been told, you know, anytime we did any testing with rugby, trust me, you'd be good at it… But I never really thought there was an opportunity for me.
"The second there was, I just took a chance and went all in."
Each NFL team is allowed to have one roster exemption for a qualifying international player from the start of the club’s off-season program through the roster reduction to 53 players and Sexton will look to fill that spot, or be signed to the practice squad for a team in the league.
The Ulster man will move to the US in the New Year, to train for ten weeks in American football, both on the field and in the classroom, at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, before showcasing his skills in front of NFL club scouts as part of the University of South Florida’s Pro Day in March.
The combine will be the final step after this, in Indianapolis at the end of February.
The IPP is a key component of the NFL’s International growth, with a game in Dublin hoped to be announced in the not so distant future.
For Sexton, the transition is an exciting one - but one which will require a large amount of work.
"I know it's going to be a tough task," he said.
"It will be new to me and I know the complexity of it, but it’s something I'm really looking forward to. I want to put my best foot forward. I know the task at hand is a big one. I'm not taking that for granted."
