McCabe graduated from The English High School, where he played tackle on three consecutive championship football teams and set a city record in the 1000 yards.
He played end on the Holy Cross Crusaders varsity football team all four years he attended the school.
[4] In 1938, Holy Cross rejected a bid to play in the Cotton Bowl Classic due to opposition from the school's president and because head coach Eddie Anderson was looking to leave the team.
[5] A month later, Anderson became head coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes and McCabe promoted assistant Joe Sheeketski to succeed him.
[6] Sheeketski left after the 1941 season and Ank Scanlan, a virtually unknown high school coach from Philadelphia was chosen as his replacement by McCabe and faculty moderator of athletics Timothy Phelan.