Toronto’s NFLer returns with advice for highschool players
Toronto native Kerry Carter has travelled a long tough road to make it to the apex of the football world with the National Football League’s Seattle Seahawks. He knows better than most that there is no rest when you are chasing your goals, so on his bye week he chose to come home to Toronto and work on one of his long-term goals: helping the next generation of football stars in the city.
After travelling to Etobicoke to speak to players and media members before a game, Carter made an appearance at North Toronto Collegiate to take in a practice, speak to the team and to give the Town Crier an exclusive interview.
"I listen to all the other guys that I went to school with from Texas, Florida and California talk about how football is there," said Carter. "I’m proud of where I came from and all the things that I did, but I want to help us for the future and get us to different levels. There’s a lot of talent here but it’s not just because of the talent that I want to help. It’s because football teaches you so much more than just athletics: you get a lot of teamwork, cooperation, being consistent and being responsible for your actions. Just a lot of things about life."
Carter played highschool ball for the Father Henry Carr Crusaders and his club ball with the Mississauga Warriors, before moving on to Stanford University where he was the starting running back, while studying pre-med. When it came time to choose universities, Carter admitted that it was something one of the Stanford coaches told him in recruiting that stuck with him. It wasn’t a four-year decision, but rather a 40-year decision choosing a university.
Life wasn’t all rosy for Carter while at Stanford, he told the star-struck North Toronto Norsemen. He had his ups and downs, including an on-field collision with another player, which left the opposing player paralyzed before he passed away a year later.
When Carter was heading into his senior year, his coach for three seasons, Tyrone Willingham, left the school for Notre Dame University. This development brought uncertainty to Carter’s life, especially heading into the draft. But it was a chance meeting with one NFL Hall of Famer and a phone call from another that kept Carter focussed and on track.
"Ronnie Lott just called me up out of the blue after my senior year when I was getting ready for the combine," said Carter. "He called me up and said, ‘Look you are a great player, don’t get down on yourself, don’t lose it.’ He just told me, ‘Don’t lose it, you have it, whatever it is you have, you have something in there that makes you special and don’t lose that.’"
The powerful 6-foot-3 running back then started preparing for NFL training camp after going undrafted and drew on the experience of former San Fransisco 49ers star running back Roger Craig, whom he met at the barber shop while at Stanford. Craig’s advice for entering a training camp undrafted translates in to all aspects of life Carter said.
"Don’t worry about what anyone else does. If another running back has a great run or great catch, you go congratulate him. Tell him good job and be happy for him, then when you go in, just be your best on every play. You don’t have to be great on every play but if you’re good on every play, you do your assignment, you do everything you are supposed to do, and the other stuff will come. Greatness will come because if you are good on every play and every down, you’re going to be great at what you do."
Carter is currently in the midst of a 3-1 season with the Seahawks, one of the favourites in the NFL this season, where he is starting on special teams. He plans on teaching some football camps in Toronto this off-season, bringing back some other Toronto-area players who have played in either NCAA division 1 or pro-football in the United States.
Carter said he was proud to see football going through a resurgence in the city but would still like to elevate the stature of the game in his hometown. He knows only one way of achieving his goals — something he made clear to the Norsemen.
"That’s a very big thing, consistency and just hammering away no matter what happens or what’s going on around you. Just stay focussed on yourself and your goals and what you want to accomplish. Believe in yourself, that’s the biggest thing."
