Biography

Jim Petrillo was one of the finest two sport athletes to ever graduate from Bishop Feehan High School. However, it was on the gridiron that Petrillo had the greatest impact. As one of the few left handed quarterbacks to ever play for Feehan, Jim could beat an opponent with his running and his passing. In two years as a starter, he scored 17 touchdowns and threw for over 1600 yards. These statistics could have even been more impressive but for the fact that he sat out three games with injuries and was pulled from the lineup in the fourth quarter in many Feehan blowout victories.

In his junior year in a 24-0 win over Bishop Stang, Jim threw for 130 yards and scored two TD’s. Later that season, Petrillo played a game for the ages in a wild 43-42 shootout over Coyle at McGrath Stadium. In that game, he rushed for 109 yards and FOUR TD’s and passed for over 150 yards and two touchdowns. However, it was his poised two-point conversion pass to Hall of Famer Scott Connolly with 23 seconds remaining that clinched the victory for the Shamrocks. In a 56-18 romp over Somerset, Jim ran the option to perfection and rushed for 86 yards including a 53 yard burst for a TD. In another exciting win, he scored on a 13 yard bootleg with two minutes remaining in the game to defeat Durfee 21-14.

Due to a baseball injury, Petrillo had to sit out the first game of his senior year but returned to lead the Shamrocks to a Super Bowl berth at the end of the season. With a solid line in front of him led by Kevin Gay, Jeff Ethier, Chris Allen, Andrew Emerson, and Dan Saganey, there were numerous highlights in Petrillo’s final campaign. Also supporting his efforts were sure handed receivers Brian MacDonald, Jeremy Fontaine, and Rich Cullen. Jim passed for 197 yards in a last second 23-20 loss to North Attleboro. However the team bounced back to its championship form in a 54-14 rout of Attleboro. In that game Jim threw two TD passes and set up another with a nifty 19 yard scamper. He passed for another 184 yards and three touchdowns in a romp over Bishop Stang. In a gallant effort he passed for 159 yards in a 10-0 loss to perennial powerhouse Xaverian Brothers High School. In yet another impressive performance against a Division I school, Petrillo completed seven passes in a row in the second half to preserve a 13-13 tie with Boston College High School.

Jim received much deserved recognition with selections to numerous All-Star teams, and after high school he attended Bridgewater State College where he played baseball in his freshman year until an arm injury ended his career. This evening the Attleboro Hall of Fame welcomes the Shamrocks southpaw slinger, Jim Petrillo.