O-R Athlete of the Week: Trenton Carter, Carmichaels
Name: Trenton Carter
School: Carmichaels
Sport: Football
Class: Senior
Carter’s week: The 6-2, 185-pounder was involved in six touchdowns and two two-point conversions in the Mikes’ season-opening 54-33 victory over Waynesburg.
Carter passed for four touchdowns, ran for two more scores and intercepted a pass to set up a touchdown in the game.
Not only did Carter lead the Mikes from a nine-point deficit in the first half, he did so after his starting right guard and right tackle left the game with injuries. Taking their place were two freshmen.
“We came out a little flat and they jumped on us,” said Carter. “We had some new guys need to go in there and they were a little jittery. But once we got in our groove, we started moving.
“(The injuries) looked a lot worse than it actually was. I think they’ll be OK.”
Carter threw TD passes of 16, 31 and nine yards to Stewart, and 25 yards to Tyler Richmond. Carter also ran for scores of three and two yards.
“I knew we have a pretty balanced offense, running and throwing,” said Carmichaels head coach Ron Gallagher. “The offense is pretty much on his shoulders.”
Gallagher said a couple adjustments on defense, where Carter plays linebacker, made the difference in turning things around in the second half.
“If you look at the second half, you can see the difference,” said Gallagher. “They had three big plays that really hurt us. We didn’t tackle that great. Maybe it was first-game jitters. But we’re never out of a game. It’s not just him. We have talented people around him. It’s all on his shoulders. We have a very complex playbook because of how smart he is.”
High expectations: Carter said the goal remained the same for this and every other season in the program’s history.
“We always come into the season expecting to win every game we play,” said Carter, who has played quarterback since the youth leagues.
Carter said he gets more pleasure from playing linebacker as he does quarterback.
“Sometimes, I enjoy tackling more than I enjoy throwing the ball,” Carter said. “I enjoy handing out big hits. It lets my aggression come out.”
Compiled by Joe Tuscano