Justin McCareins holds the Northern Illinois career records for pass receptions (204), receiving yards (2,991) and receiving touchdowns (29). McCareins recorded 13 100-yard receiving games in his NIU career, the most in school history. Three different times in his career, McCareins pulled in three touchdowns in a game.
McCareins also finished with 4,367 all-purpose yards as a Huskie, fourth-most in school history. He averaged 12.4 yards per punt return during his career, the second-best mark all-time at NIU.
In 1998 as a sophomore, McCareins made 54 receptions for 486 yards and five touchdowns. He recorded 12 receptions against Western Michigan, tied for the sixth-most in a game by a Huskie receiver and the most for McCareins in a game during his NIU career.
As a junior in 1999, McCareins pulled in 57 catches, tied for the ninth-most in a single-season at NIU, for 906 yards, the eighth-best single-season mark in NIU history. McCareins caught 10 touchdown passes during his junior season.
During his senior season, McCareins recorded 66 receptions, the fifth-best single-season mark in school history, for 1,168 yards, second-highest in Huskie history. For the second-straight season, McCareins pulled in 10 receiving touchdowns. In addition to his receiving numbers, McCareins was named the 2000 MAC Special Teams Player of the Year while also earning First Team All-MAC honors and Honorable Mention All-America accolades from The Football News during his final season as a Huskie.
Following his career at NIU, McCareins was drafted in the fourth round of the 2001 NFL Draft by the Tennessee Titans. He played with the Titans from 2001-03 before joining the New York Jets for four seasons from 2004-07. McCareins finished his NFL career by rejoining the Titans in 2008.
