McGuire is set for MIHS football action

Published 8:30 am Thursday, September 4, 2025

After being sidelined with an injury for most of last year’s football season, Mercer Island High School (MIHS) senior Brendan McGuire is raring to go on the gridiron again.

McGuire will man the safety, wide receiver and backup quarterback positions as new head coach Victor Gamboa leads the Islanders into the fray against 3A KingCo and nonleague opponents.

The locals will open up their schedule this month by hosting Lincoln (Seattle) on Sept. 5, traveling to Stadium on Sept. 12 and welcoming Liberty (Renton) on Sept. 19 and Hazen on Sept. 26 (all games are at 7 p.m.). They’ll roll from there with four more games in October.

Last year, MIHS finished with a 10-1 record, including a district playoffs win and state appearance.

In McGuire’s assessment of the 2025 squad, he noted: “I think we’re looking pretty good because we’ve been putting in a lot of hard work throughout the whole summer. Pretty much had practices like every day in July and August, so it’s coming together pretty well.”

McGuire sustained a right thumb injury at the start of last season and returned to play backup safety for the Islanders’ final three games.

He’s feeling good about what awaits this time out.

“I’m excited because I haven’t had too much varsity experience so far,” said McGuire, who played on the junior varsity and varsity squads his sophomore year.

A lifelong football fan, McGuire played flag ball during elementary school and began his tackle journey as an eighth-grader with the Mercer Island youth varsity program. McGuire credits coach Alec Bean for guiding him toward loving football then and continuing his affinity for the game into the present day.

“I love the community Mercer Island football has,” said McGuire, who quarterbacked the team throughout the summer and will play backup to junior starter Dillon Carroll, who is Las Vegas Raiders head coach Pete Carroll’s grandson.

The Reporter asked McGuire a series of questions to get a behind-the-scenes glimpse into his life:

What’s your biggest pet peeve?

I’m not a big fan of people talking with food in their mouth. That’s kind of annoying.

What’s your favorite restaurant there on Mercer Island?

Just Poke on the north end.

What’s the best piece of advice that you’ve ever received?

You hear this a lot in football: If you’re going to mess up, mess up at 100%.

What’s a binge-worthy TV series that you’re really into that you’d recommend?

“Breaking Bad” I loved, and I’m currently watching “Suits,” which is pretty good, too.

If you could go to dinner with one person, who would that be?

Probably LeBron James.

What’s your dream job? What would you like to be doing in the future?

Something business-related. Maybe a sports agent, that’d be cool.

If you’re having a tough day there at school, what’s a good way to break out of that and kind of turn it around?

Probably just be talking to my best friends. They’re always fun to crack a joke with, make me smile.

What superpower would you like to have?

Ability to fly, that’d be cool. Go anywhere.