(facebook.com/shannon.reilly.7796)
Linebacker Luke Kuechly is perhaps the Super Bowl-bound Carolina Panthers‘ best defensive player. Kuechly has been feared since he broke into the NFL, with Carolina, in 2012. However, in 2015, he had arguably his finest season. He missed three games due to injury, but still set career highs in forced fumbles, fumble recoveries and he even returned an interception for a touchdown on Thanksgiving. He followed that up by scoring an interception-returned touchdown against the Seahawks in the NFC Championship Game. Watch his Thanksgiving Day touchdown against Dallas below.
Luke Kuechly 32 yard #interception return for the #panthers #touchdown!
A veritable nice guy by all who meet him, Kuechly came from humble beginnings and attended St. Xavier, the largest all-boys Jesuit prep school in the country, in Cincinnati. “Luke was a nice boy,” said St. Xavier football coach Steve Specht, “until he crossed that line. He could flip that switch like no one I ever coached. He could literally take on a new persona on the field. It’s an interesting case study.”
So who is the woman behind the football star? Find out all about his girlfriend, Shannon Reilly, below.
1. Shannon Reilly Graduated From a Prestigious All Girls Catholic High School
(twitter.com/shanmreilly)
Meet Shannon Reilly, girlfriend of Carolina Panthers star linebacker Luke Kuechly. Like Kuechly, Reilly also went to a prestigious Catholic high school in Cincinnati. She graduated from the all girls college preparatory school Saint Ursula Academy in 2010.
Reilly herself was also an athlete. She started playing lacrosse in the sixth grade, and also played club field hockey when she was in high school. It’s safe to say the couple shares some similar interests.
2. She Attended The University of Cincinnati
(facebook.com/shannon.reilly.7796)
Reilly went on to attend the University of Cincinnati, where she majored in biology and minored in chemistry. During college, she became a member of nationally recognized sorority Theta Phi Alpha. Her LinkedIn profile reveals she graduated in 2014 from Cincinnati with a Bachelor of Science (B.S.), Minor of Chemistry, Biology/Biological Sciences, General.
LinkedIn also reveals Reilly is currently attending Gardner-Webb University, getting her Masters in Physician Assistant Studies. She’s expected to complete that program in 2017. Reilly also seems enjoys traveling and studying. In her junior year, Reilly studied in Copenhagen, Denmark, through the Danish Institute for Studying Abroad.
3. She Is Career Oriented And Fancies a Career in Surgery or Medicine in the Near Future
(facebook.com/shannon.reilly.7796)
As mentioned, Reilly currently is studying for a career as a physician’s assistant. Her academic interest can be traced back to a student blog. In it, she talks about her collegiate time as well as her experiences studying abroad during her college years.
Reilly is obviously very career-oriented. Her most recently documented career ambitions, reportedly, saw her aspiring to become either a surgeon or a surgeon’s assistant. In the blog, she wrote as much:
I hope to one day be a physician assistant and continue on the medical tradition that my great-grandmother started and my dad and his brothers continued. I love sports, but play nothing serious at the moment and try to be involved on campus. I’m completely enjoying school, but am very excited to graduate!
4. She Is The Second of 6 Children
(facebook.com/shannon.reilly.7796)
Reilly comes from a big family who are big football fans. She is the second of six children. She has three sisters and she is the eldest girl. Shannon’s sisters are Maddy, Shauna, and Marion, and her two brothers are Tommy and Matt Reilly.
Family is still very important to her. Her current Facebook cover photo, shown above, is a picture of her posing with her siblings as young children during Christmastime. The caption to the photo reads, “Can’t wait to recreate this in a week!” and was dated December 9, 2015.
5. She Is Active On Social Media
(facebook.com/shannon.reilly.7796)
Reilly is very active on social media. In addition to her blogging, she also has active Twitter and Facebook profiles. Pictures of her and Luke are featured fairly prominently on her accounts.
She also had two childhood dogs. Duncan and Lilly, according to her Facebook profile, were prominent fixtures in hers and her siblings’ childhoods.
