Carlos Mack spent the past three seasons patrolling the perimeter and making big plays at Edison High School. Now he wants to return to where his football journey began.
Mack, a defensive back committed to Oregon State, is enrolling into Clovis High School this fall, with intentions to play his senior season for the Cougars.
According to Clovis High athletic director Jesse Hardwick, Mack signed up for Clovis High’s offseason conditioning program, but once school resumes in August, there are a few more logistical steps before Mack can suit up Week 1 against Sanger.
“I would anticipate he’s playing Week 1,” said Clovis head coach Rich Hammond. “The situation historically would mean he would play Week 1 without an issue, but until word comes back from the section office, nothing is final.”
When asked to name current Cougars he played with in fourth grade, Mack rattled off name after name without hesitation. His motivation for joining “Big Blue” goes beyond football.
“There’s a lot of familiarity with those guys,” Hammond said. “Carlos went to Red Bank Elementary, played at Clark Intermediate with all those guys… I think they’ve all been friends for a long, long time.”
Mack attended Edison High because his father was the defensive back coach at the school. With his father no longer coaching at Edison, he decided to transfer back to the neighborhood he grew up in.
At Edison, he earned his first All-State selection from Cal-Hi Sports during his sophomore season, totaling 64 tackles, three sacks, an interception, and a fumble recovery in 2019.
During the 2021 spring season, Mack garnered All-State honors once again as he showcased his big-play ability at wide receiver. He opened the season with a 45-yard touchdown catch against Madera, followed by a 70-yard touchdown against San Joaquin Memorial and 50-yard score against Hanford.
Mack received scholarship offers from Sacramento State, Northern Arizona, Fresno State and Colorado State, but committed to Oregon State on June 27.
“It’s very apparent why he would have the offers that he has and why he’s going to Oregon State,” Hammond said. “He’s a top-flight DB and a very good wide receiver. Anything he does, he does it naturally and he’s a very gifted athlete.”
The length of 6-foot-2, 185-pound Mack lends itself to position flexibility, allowing him to fill whatever need the Cougars have.
“If they have a great receiver we have to lock down, I’d expect him to be locking that guy down in that spot,” Hammond said. “I would anticipate Carlos to be the feature guy in the secondary, matched up against the best player on the other team.”
Mack was part of an “uber-successful” class of athletes at Clark Intermediate, playing on a championship-winning basketball team and running track and field.
Along with current Clovis quarterback and Utah commit Nate Johnson, Mack and the Clark Intermediate football team went 15-1 in two seasons.
He will rejoin many of his teammates from those seasons, this time on the Lamonica Stadium grass.
“I’ve always felt that I wanted to finish out my high school years with the friends and family that I grew up with,” Mack said. “I’ve only been to the Clovis football games when I was younger.”
Hammond said the first summer conditioning practice “felt like a reunion.”
“He rolled out the first day and he knows everybody. He fell right into place, and everyone is at ease because they’ve all hung out with each other forever.”