Micchia was born in Sharon, Pennsylvania, and attended high school there,[2] playing three sports.[3] He initially attended Youngstown State University in Youngstown, Ohio, but transferred to Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania, after his freshman year.[3]
Micchia played college football for the Westminster Titans for the 1987 through 1989 seasons, going 31–0 as a starting quarterback.[2] The Titans won consecutive NAIA Division II Football National Championships, in 1988 and 1989, during which the team had a 27-game winning streak.[2] He was the school's first quarterback to accumulate 4,000 passing yards.[4] Micchia wore uniform number 10 in honor of Fran Tarkenton, his favorite player when he was growing up.[3] Micchia briefly played professionally, appearing in the final regular-season game of the 1990 Pittsburgh Gladiators of the Arena Football League.[5]
Micchia received a Bachelor of Science degree from Westminster.[6] Following his football career, Micchia attended the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine,[2] where he was a member of Phi Sigma Gamma.[7] He graduated in 1994 and later went into private practice in Wake Forest, North Carolina.[2]
In 2013, Micchia was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.[2] He is also an inductee of the Titan Sports Hall of Fame at Westminster College (1995),[8] and the Mercer County Hall of Fame (2016).[9]