Jan. 26, 2009

DeKALB – There will be a McCareins at Super Bowl XLIII, after all.

Former Northern Illinois wide receiver Justin McCareins' Tennessee Titans didn't make the Super Bowl, but his mom Dr. Alicia McCareins will represent the family at the big game. She will travel to Tampa for Super Bowl XLIII thanks to her hard work for charity, and a helping hand from Northern Illinois fans.

McCareins, a native of Naperville, Ill., finished in the top-three of 35 mothers of NFL players who competed to see who could collect the most food as part of the "NFL Moms Tackling Hunger with Chunky Soup Program," winning her a trip to the Feb. 1 match-up between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Arizona Cardinals. She collected 86,852 pounds of food, including the food donated by fans at a trio of NIU basketball games, all of which will go to the Northern Illinois Food Bank.

The drive, sponsored by Campbell's and the Professional Football Players Mothers Association (PFPMA), collected a total of over half a million pounds of food on behalf of Feeding America.

The NIFB serves over 520 food-assistance sites in 13 northern Illinois counties, including DeKalb County. The 43 tons of food secured during the Tackling Hunger drive will go to feeding people throughout that region.

Justin McCareins, a graduate of Naperville North High School, played wide receiver for the Huskies from 1997-2000. He holds Northern Illinois records with 204 career pass receptions, 2,991 career receiving yards. and 29 receiving touchdowns. He was a fourth round pick of Tennessee in the 2001 NFL draft, and spent three years with the Titans and played four years for the New York Jets before re-signing with Tennessee prior to this season.