As they returned to Poughkeepsie from Phil Simms Stadium in Morehead, Kentucky, Marist football’s pivot to their next game began after a 23-21 loss to the Morehead State Eagles on Oct. 18, 2025. Redshirt sophomore tight end Jackson Conners-McCarthy, however, planned to head in a different direction.
With no prior announcement to teammates, coaches or even friends who grew up watching him play, Conners-McCarthy took in the moment. Before joining his teammates on the team bus, he wandered the field and stared past the bleachers towards the Appalachian Mountain landscape surrounding the field.
The scenery, dappling in the late fall with red and orange leaves, offered him peace. With the season leaving him feeling more hurt mentally than physically, the mountains gave him the moment he needed.
“It just seemed like a good place to call it,” Conners-McCarthy recalled. “I realized I didn’t want to feel the way I’d been feeling anymore.”
Days after the game and subsequent decision, the 22-year-old FCS All-American tight end grabbed his phone. A rising star and one of the nation’s best returning tight ends informed his family and close friends about his retirement from the game through a heartfelt Instagram post.
He never expected what followed.
Hundreds of old coaches, friends, classmates, teammates and even strangers were in Conners-McCarthy’s corner. People thanked him for his honesty, and some even told him that his decision helped them to face their own fears of having to walk away from a sport they once thought defined them.
“I didn’t really expect anyone to care,” he admitted. “But people reached out saying how it helped them. And that meant more than anything.”
Conners-McCarthy stood out in three sports at the notoriously athletic Brooks School in Massachusetts. He committed to play football at Bryant University but transferred to Marist after just one season.
When he arrived in Poughkeepsie, Conners-McCarthy earned FCS Honorable Mention All-American from The Associated Press and ranked sixth amongst FCS tight ends entering the 2025 season, according to HERO Sports. Thus, he felt it would be impossible to walk away, but staying made him feel even worse.
Conners-McCarthy felt football meant more than just shaping him; it was his identity. This held true for nearly two decades, at least on the outside.
Life in Andover, Massachusetts produced the same yearly routine. It began with football, led into winter’s basketball and concluded with lacrosse in the spring. Through it all, football was his thing.
Conners-McCarthy became a versatile two-way starter in football. He could catch the fade ball like an X receiver, run routes like a slot receiver and had instincts that coaches dreamt of. The accolades followed and piled up by graduation: multi-sport captain, Eagle-Tribune All Star, All-State on both sides of the ball and an impactful presence.
“He was always the kid who loved competing more than anyone,” his mother, Linda, said. “He was happiest when he had something to chase.”
Conners-McCarthy enjoyed his days at Bryant the least. The Bulldogs recruited him to play linebacker, resulting in him drifting further away from the joy football used to bring him. He never appeared in a game, struggled mentally and his relationship with football began fading. Despite this, he did not truly know if he was ready to call it quits.
“As a mom, you can tell when your son is unhappy,” said his mother. “At Bryant, that love was slipping.”
The 2024 season was supposed to be a reset and a chance at a fresh start. His first Red Fox season grew into a breakout season.
Marist’s coaching staff moved Conners-McCarthy to the tight end/H back position. This decision unleashed a brand new player; he became a mismatch for every opponent. His strength created problems for defensive backs to guard him, but linebackers could not keep up with his speed. Opposing defenses simply had no answer.
He started all 11 games for the Red Foxes, leading the team with 50 receptions and 441 receiving yards. He added three receiving touchdowns, resulting in more accolades from a single season than most athletes earn in all four years of college: Associated Press FCS Honorable Mention All-American, Stats Perform Freshman All-American, Phil Steele Second Team Freshman All-American, and Second Team All-PFL from both Phil Steele and the coaches’ vote.
The Associated Press’ All-American nod marked the first time a Marist freshman earned All-American honors in the program’s history.
His career day in North Carolina against Davidson consisted of 101 receiving yards and a touchdown, but PFL coaches had him on their radars well before that. In his Marist debut, the redshirt freshman reeled in eight receptions for 92 yards after not playing the position in well over a year.
Early in 2025, Conners-McCarthy took a shot to the head, resulting in a concussion. This moment put him at a pause.
From there, the injuries kept stacking: a torn labrum, meniscus issues and a hamstring he said never seemed to heal. He battled every week, needing to negotiate between what he expected from himself and his body’s physical limits.
“My philosophy was always ‘play until you can’t, physically or mentally.’ I reached that point. I needed two surgeries; I wasn’t playing up to my own standards. Mentally, I just wasn’t myself.”
Jackson Conners-McCarthy
“My philosophy was always ‘play until you can’t, physically or mentally.’ I reached that point. I needed two surgeries; I wasn’t playing up to my own standards. Mentally, I just wasn’t myself,” said Conners-McCarthy.
He planned to grind through the season like a football player. A sport defined by toughness and grittiness, he told himself to push through the pain, throw some dirt on it and pretend everything will be alright.
It was not alright.
“Every time I stepped on a field, I wasn’t being true to myself,” said Conners-McCarthy. “That’s not fair to anyone, especially my team, [and] I love my teammates.”
His teammates even felt a shift before he broke the news.
“I live with Jackson,” said teammate sophomore wide receiver Jack Melore. “He’s one of my best friends. Losing him on the team hurt everyone, but it hit me hard. We ate every meal together. We did everything together. More than anything now, it’s just time to be there for my boy and respect his decision.”
“Jackson is a great young man, and he has a massive future ahead of him,” said former assistant offensive line coach Ian Grant. “If football isn’t for him anymore, I fully support whatever he chooses.”
On a quiet Sunday afternoon, Conners-McCarthy hit “post.”
He did not expect to reach a broad audience with the post. He intended to reach close friends and family asking about matchups, game plans and practices, only anticipating a few messages congratulating him on retirement.
The last thing Conners-McCarthy expected was dozens of coaches, teammates, college administrators, adults and even former opponents reaching out to him. He least expected to set an example of an athlete that put his mental health before a game that usually demands the opposite.
“I think athletes get scared of life without their sport. It’s intimidating,” said Conners-McCarthy. “Honestly, it’s intimidating for me, but there really is a life for all of us outside athletics.”
Part of moving forward for Conners-McCarthy is determining how to get people to see him as more than just a football player.
“I want to be more than that,” said Conners-McCarthy. “For 17 years, football was what I showed the world. Now I want to learn who I am outside of it. I hope other athletes let themselves do the same.”
Though the people who grew up with Conners-McCarthy will always see him as an athlete, those closest to him do not mention the touchdowns, accolades, rankings or crazy catches; they mention the person he is.
His mother talks about his kindness. His coaches discuss his humility. His teammates discuss the little things, like meals, jokes and moments between practices. He brought more to Marist than his production on the field; he established a presence as a friend.
“Jackson is the guy everyone wants on their side,” said Melore. “Losing him on the field hurts, but he’s still my best friend. That matters way more.”
After 17 years of football, Conners-McCarthy’s football future concluded. Now, he must find a job, undergo surgeries, explore new passions and discover new identities. With some space to take a breath, he has already begun embracing what the unknown will bring.
“Honestly, I’m excited. [I’m] nervous but excited. I’ve been an athlete for so long. It’s time to figure out who Jackson is without a helmet on,” said Conners-McCarthy.
Some athletes are afraid to admit the truth: chasing a new version of yourself does not mean you must abandon the past. It simply is an opportunity to grow beyond it.
Edited by Mike Duda and Nate Shoemaker
Graphic by Xavier Angel
Photos by Marist Athletics and Quinn DiFiore
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