Senior football and basketball player Mac Christy is a very famous athlete around here.

His dad, who coaches at Knoch, played in the NFL, and Christy, who had good career here in football and looks to continue it in college, has gotten a couple D1 offers himself.

Coach Christy went to Pitt and played for Vikings and the Buccaneers. He was a three-time Pro Bowler, was a super bowl champion and was All Pro twice. So, Mac basically grew up with football and took off since.

Mac has offers from Maine, Robert Morris, and he also has a D2 offer from Slippery Rock. Christy is 6’5 and weighs about 230. He played a lot of positions, including linebacker, quarterback, and tight end. He is an all-conference punter as well.

Coach King said this about Christy:

“I asked Mac to play three positions in three years and that was only on offense. Each time, Mac put all the work in necessary to be successful.”

Coach King and Mac also had a quiet but strong relationship through the years.

“Mac is not a real talkative guy; he lets his actions do the talking. Nevertheless, you do not have to talk with someone to understand them. I always got a feeling around Mac that he wants very badly to succeed. He has been a real pleasure to coach.”

Mac was a strong part of the team this year but his time will end at Knoch and Coach King thinks his future will be bright.

            Coach’s advice to Mac was, “Don’t ever let anyone else affect how it is that you see yourself as an athlete. If you dream it, you can do it. But you must always be willing to pay the price which is a lot of blood, sweat and tears. Good luck- I am always here to help.”

            Mac is not a real talkative guy but he had a few things to say about recruitment

            “It was good but stressful at the same time,” said Christy. “I mean it felt good when it first happened but it feels normal after a while.”

So it seems life has not changed a whole lot as an athlete after getting division 1 offers.

            Growing up, Mac’s favorite NFL player was Ladanian Tomilson but he says that he looks up to his Dad a lot. He started playing tackle football in 7th grade and his dream college used to be Ohio State or Pitt. However, things are changing.

            Coach Christy, who went through a similar process for recruiting, explains how the process was different for him and Mac.

            “The recruiting school or coach would send a letter expressing interest in the athlete. If the athlete was interested in that school, then the recruiting coach would usually make a phone call to the athlete or pay a visit to the school to meet the student athlete in person,” said Coach. “It seems like now, most of the communication is done through social media. It’s the same because it is still a lot of work for the athlete. There is just a different style for the communication.”

Mac’s father was a big influence in his life but he didn’t really influence his college decision at all.

            “As a parent, I like to inform Mac of the pros and cons of any situation, but the decision is ultimately his. He also must live with the consequences of these decisions,” Christy says.

            Mac has a bright future in football, the ceiling is high. We all hope he succeeds and makes it the pros someday. Mac will be watched throughout the process and hopefully he excels.

            “I told Mac that he can do or be whatever he wants to. Don’t ever let some person tell you that you can’t do something. You are a person, control that,” Coach Christy said