Mike McCarthy smiled as he briskly rubbed the palms of his hands together. It was as much of an attempt to keep from crying as he was psyching himself up.

The effort failed.

McCarthy made it all of five public words into his tenure as Pittsburgh Steelers coach before he choked up.

It wouldn’t be the final time McCarthy got emotional Tuesday, either.

On at least a half dozen occasions during his introductory news conference at Acrisure Stadium, McCarthy paused before he was brought to tears.

“I thought I’d at least be able to get started,” the Greenfield native said as he took a moment to compose himself seconds into being introduced as the 17th coach in Steelers history.

“This city, this franchise this fan base means the world to me,” McCarthy added moments later. “Because Pittsburgh is my world.

“It’s just awesome to be back here.”

Greenfield native Mike McCarthy gets emotional when introduced as the Steelers head coach pic.twitter.com/ZAMCa5LKft

— Chris Harlan (@CHarlan_Trib) January 27, 2026

With a couple dozen family members sitting in the two closest rows to the dais at the posh Champions Club at Acrisure, McCarthy made his introduction to Steelers Nation as much of a lovefest for the city he was raised in and team he grew up rooting for as it was a coronation of McCarthy by Steelers president Art Rooney II and general manager Omar Khan.

McCarthy twice couldn’t get through opening remarks, apologizing to the gathered media and a handful of Steelers players past and present.

“You know, oftentimes coaches and players, you put on new team colors, and it takes a minute to feel comfortable in those new colors,” McCarthy said. “But to be blessed beyond any measure one day to put on the colors you wore since you … were brought home (as a newborn) from Mercy Hospital…”

McCarthy pulled himself together by teasing Steelers staffers for placing family “down here in the front.” Included among those were his parents Joe, 87, and Ellen, 84.

McCarthy even shouted out the address of the house that Joe and Ellen raised he and his three sisters (Colleen, Ellen and Kellie) and one brother (Joe, who passed away in 2015).

“I just want to make sure,” McCarthy said, “that when we do get that (Vince Lombardi Trophy), the seventh (Super Bowl championship) trophy in the case, we’ll start that victory parade at 1137 Greenfield Avenue.“

McCarthy, 62, already produced the fourth Lombardi Trophy for one of the NFL’s other glamour franchises, the Green Bay Packers. He coached that team for 13 seasons and led the Dallas Cowboys for five more 2020-24.

The official announcement of McCarthy’s hiring by the Steelers to replace Mike Tomlin came 125 years to the day of the birth of team patriarch Art Rooney.

“I like the fact that today is my grandfather’s birthday,” Rooney II said while introducing McCarthy. “He would have loved the fact that we’re hiring a guy from Greenfield to be our coach.

“(But) him being from Greenfield had little to do with our decision here. It’s really great to be able to hire somebody who has such a tremendous winning track record and won everywhere he’s been.”

McCarthy ranks fourth among active coaches and 15th all-time in wins with 174 in addition to 11 in the postseason. Over 18 prior seasons as a coach, McCarthy’s teams made the playoff 12 times and won their divisions on eight occasions. His Super Bowl victory came at the expense of the Steelers in February 2011.

In addition to his time as a head coach, McCarthy also worked for the Kansas City Chiefs, New Orleans Saints and San Francisco 49ers since he first made it to the NFL ranks in 1993.

That came after four seasons on the staff at Pitt, the campus less than two miles from his childhood home.

Starting as soon as Wednesday, McCarthy will be working at a facility likewise roughly two miles from the four-bedroom, two-bath, two-story brick house where he was raised.

.⁦@AcrisureStadium⁩ with a message for the new coach pic.twitter.com/2i3miWT8VH

— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) January 27, 2026

As McCarthy spoke Tuesday, he had not yet seen his office at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex team headquarters, the one occupied by Tomlin and Bill Cowher before him. Each joined Chuck Noll (four) in adding one of those Lombardi Trophies to the second-story display room one passes on the way to the coaches’ offices.

“I do want to thank two men I’m very fortunate to call friends,” McCarthy said, “Mike Tomlin and Bill Cowher. They’ve represented this organization with such class, and I’m honored to follow in their footsteps. They left the proverbial cupboard full, for sure.”

There will be plenty of time for McCarthy to work in conjunction with Khan and the rest of the football staff in evaluating that “cupboard” and re-shaping the roster of a team that has made the playoffs the past three seasons but has not won a postseason game in nine years.

“I’m looking forward,” McCarthy said Tuesday, “to getting started tomorrow.”

But before McCarthy gets into the nitty-gritty of his new gig, he was afforded a 30-minute formal welcome Tuesday that allowed him to be reflective and spellbound that a kid from the East End could one day end up coach of the same team he grew up watching become a dynasty during his formative years in the 1970s.

Family members who before were proud of (as they refer to him) “Michael” in the past would dress up in, say, Packers green and gold or Chiefs red and yellow.

Not anymore.

“We can finally openly wear our Steeler swag,” McCarthy said. “So, let’s get it.

“My heart is full. My focus is singular. It’s time to bring another championship back to this great city.”

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