Trib HSSN June Madness: Tyler Boyd, Clairton vs. Pat McAfee, Plum

By: Don Rebel
Wednesday, June 10, 2020 | 9:00 AM

Over the course of the next few weeks, June Madness will determine who fans believe is the WPIAL Athlete of the Century.

HSSN has put together two 32-player brackets, one for the boys and one for the girls, of WPIAL alumni. Outside of a few exceptions, the field is made up of former district players who excelled in more than one sport.

Each weekday, June Madness will have one matchup each day with a little background info on each athlete found in a daily tale of the tape.

Starting at 9 a.m. Wednesday and running through 9 a.m. Thursday, vote on the HSSN twitter page on the two athletes featured in this quarterfinals matchup.

Check the HSSN website at noon Thursday for the matchup’s final results.

Here is the contest for the boys. Round 3, Day 5:

Tyler Boyd vs. Pat McAfee is another small school vs. big school battle of NFL stars as the wide receiver takes on the kicker.

Tyler Boyd — Clairton Class of 2013

(Football, basketball, baseball)

• Defeated Ayden Owens of North Allegheny in the second round, 71-29%.

• Defeated Justin King of Gateway in the first round, 76-24%.

• 2012 Pittsburgh Tribune-Review football player of the year.

• 2012 Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Terrific 25 football all-star.

• Despite seeing time as a wide receiver and quarterback in his four years at Clairton, Boyd finished as a running back and was fifth on the all-time WPIAL rushing list with 5,755 yards, including a gaudy 11.9 yards-per-carry average and 2,567 yards his senior year.

• Broke the WPIAL record with 117 career touchdowns.

• After losing his very first varsity game at Clairton, Boyd and his teammates won the next 63 games over his four years in black and orange while claiming four straight WPIAL and PIAA Class A championships.

• Played in the 2013 US Army All-American Bowl and the 2013 Big 33 all-star football games. Boyd was MVP of the Big 33 Classic after accounting for five touchdowns on two scoring receptions, a touchdown run, a TD pass and a 91-yard kickoff return for a score.

• Was an all-section basketball player his senior year as he helped the Bears reach the WPIAL championship game.

• Came out for the Clairton baseball team his senior year and was the starting shortstop.

• Played wide receiver at Pitt and currently is a wide out in the NFL for Cincinnati.

Pat McAfee — Plum Class of 2005

(Football, soccer)

• Defeated Steve Breaston of Woodland Hills in the second round, 68-32%.

• Defeated Aaron Donald of Penn Hills in the first round, 51-49%.

• 2004 first-team all-conference kicker.

• Went 7 for 7 in field goals with his longest coming on a 48-yard boot. He showed off his strong leg consistently on kickoffs, with 80% of them going into the end zone for Plum.

• Rated the No. 1 kicker in the nation in 2004 by Scout.com.

• While in high school in 2003, McAfee won the annual Punt, Pass and Kick national competition.

• Won a national kicking competition in Miami with a 65-yard field goal that led him to getting a college scholarship.

• Was a first-team WPIAL boys soccer all-star his sophomore, junior and senior years at Plum.

• Played college football as a kicker at West Virginia before moving on to become a punter in the NFL for Indianapolis over eight years.

Tyler Boyd – @boutdat_23
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Pat McAfee – @PatMcAfeeShow

— TribLive HSSN (@TribLiveHSSN) June 10, 2020

Tags: Clairton, Plum