Football: Carey stepping away from Wood

Mike Carey will not be part of Archbishop Wood's bid for a third consecutive PIAA Class AAA state football title.

The Vikings defensive coordinator and offensive-line coach is taking a sabbatical of at least one year for personal reasons. An investor in a nutritional supplement company, he plans to spend more time building the brand.

"The company has just taken off in the last two or three years," Carey said. "The chief executive officer has asked me to become more involved. That will include some travel."

Carey, who starred as a lineman at Central Bucks West and Pittsburgh, has spent 30 years on the sideline. As Mike Pettine's righthand man during C.B. West's dynasty days, he helped guide the Bucks to Class AAAA crowns in 1991, '97, '98, and '99.

"I'll miss the weekend games, the kids, working with the other coaches," he said. "That's why I'm pretty sure I'll be back in a year."

Carey, who was C.B. West's head coach in 2000, was at Wood for five seasons. During that time, the Vikings went 66-8 and won three state titles.

In 2003, as an assistant to Dick Beck at North Penn, Carey helped the the Knights capture the Classs AAAA title with a 37-10 thrashing of Pittsburgh Central Catholic.

With his children gone from the nest, Carey, who owns four restaurants in Bucks County, remains open to being a head coach elsewhere.

"I expect to return to Wood, but being a head coach at the right school still intrigues me," the 60-year-old said. "The program would have to have all the prerequisities that I consider essential to be successful."