Mars O-lineman Michael Carmody looking to fine tune blocking before college

By: Greg Macafee
Sunday, June 30, 2019 | 5:02 PM

---

Purchase Photo Options

Previous Next

The Tribune-Review and the TribLive High School Sports Network are profiling each member of the 25-player Trib HSSN Preseason Football All-Star team. The players will be recognized July 23 during HSSN Media Day at Kennywood Park.

Mars offensive lineman Michael Carmody has been one of the most well-known players in the WPIAL for some time. With a 6-foot-6, 295-pound frame, he stands out on the football field and on the basketball court.

His size also drew a lot of attention from Division I colleges as nearly three dozen programs extended offers.

Carmody narrowed his choices to Notre Dame, Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and Texas A&M. All five have had great success on the football field, but Carmody, who is ranked 117th on ESPN’s Top 300 list, was looking for somewhere special to call home for the next chapter of his life.

He found that at Notre Dame.

God. Country. Notre Dame. ? #IrishBoundXX pic.twitter.com/YMghYbzIoj

— Michael Carmody (@michaeltcarmody) June 16, 2019

“I just had kind of been around the program and the campus a few times, and I just kind of fell in love with the school itself,” Carmody said. “I got to meet with the coaches and the players, and I just realized that was where I fit best.”

With his college decision out of the way, Carmody has resumed preparations for the 2019 season. He has been in the weight room at least four times a week, attending camps and working to add to his skill set.

“I’ve just been working on my pass set and overall technique,” Carmody said. “In the wing-T, a lot of it isn’t what I’m going to be doing in college. So I am trying to pick up a little bit of that now, so I have a good knowledge of technique when I get to college.”

While some high school teams have implemented pass-heavy offenses, many continue to rely on the running game in order to control the clock and maintain possession. With different techniques for run blocking and pass blocking, Carmody has been picking up on a lot this summer.

“It’s definitely been a little bit of a learning curve, trying to figure out hand placement, pass setting and everything like that,” he said. “But I definitely need to improve on all of that so I’m not going to be hit with a bunch of different techniques at once when I get to college. I just want to be able to have a good knowledge of a little bit of everything.”

With one season left, Carmody is hoping to add to an already impressive resume. As a junior, he helped to pave the way for running back Garrett Reinke, who rushed for 1,807 yards and 20 touchdowns.

On the way to a 9-2 record, the Fightin’ Planets averaged 225 yards on the ground and scored 29 touchdowns via the run. But after Mars’ early exit from the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs — a 14-0 loss to Woodland Hills — the goal of a WPIAL championship remains for Carmody.

“I think we have all the tools this year to do it,” he said. “We have our whole offensive like back, and we have a lot of solid skill players back, too. I think if we just put our all into it, I think we could definitely win a WPIAL.“

Trib HSSN Preseason All-Stars

A.J. Beatty, Central Catholic

Fintan Brose, Hempfield

Tui Brown, Gateway

Greg Macafee is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Greg by email at gmacafee@triblive.com or via Twitter .

Tags: Mars