Biography

In the fall of 1985 North Attleboro's coaching staff decided upon a major change and implemented the now highly-popular Wing-T offense. Despite the complexities of learning the new system in a short amount of time, and led in large part by senior Captain Mike McCarthy, the Rocketeers surprised many fans and foes as they battled on the final week of the season for the Hockomock League title.

A top-notch defensive end as a junior that was inserted as a very inexperienced running back his senior year, McCarthy was amazingly adept at running the motion plays and quick slants of the Wing-To His toughness and quickness on both sides of the ball were instrumental in North's thrilling come-from-behind victory over Sharon High. Trailing 14-0 in the 4th quarter, Mike hauled in two TD passes of 43 and 24 yards, had 12 tackles, produced 186 yards of total offense, and blocked an extra point as the Rocketeers rallied for a 15-14 victory.

In two separate, 28-0 Big Red victories over King Philip and Attleboro, Mike's big-playability again took over. Against King Philip, Mike set the tone early by returning the opening kickoff 55 yards on his was to another 2-TD performance, which included 121 yards rushing on just 17 carries. And in his final tilt as a Rocketeer against his cross-town rivals in blue, the 5-11, 170 lb. McCarthy rushed for two more touchdowns and 60 yards to help lead North over Attlleboro, earning the prestigious Balfour Trophy as the game's most valuable offensive player in the process.

In two varsity seasons Mike was involved in 58 tackles from his defensive end position, helping spearhead a defense in 1985 that allowed just 54 points all season, including a stretch of 4 games when they allowed no points at all. As a senior he accumulated 1,050 total yards of offense, scored 9 touchdowns, and averaged 5+ yards per carry to earn selection onto the Sun Chronicle, Hockomock League, and Boston Globe Div III All Star Teams.