Every play is critical to Carter
Exhibition game not meaningless for linebacker, other prospects
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 19/06/2010 (5649 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Don’t go trying to tell Thaine Carter it’s only a pre-season game. And don’t even bother referring to it as just a tune-up or a dress rehearsal before the real season begins.
No, to describe Sunday’s exhibition finale between the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Hamilton Tiger-Cats in such a manner is to diminish its importance for the 23-year-old linebacker and any other prospect trying to launch a career in pro football. And while every new recruit in Bomber colours has a story to tell, Carter’s is particularly compelling.
His story also provides, in part, a little background as to why he’s jumped off the page for the club’s coaching staff.
Rewind to Bomber rookie camp ’09 when Carter, a sixth-round draft pick out of Queen’s, is in the process of opening eyes and dropping jaws with his all-out effort. Alas, on the first day of main training camp he dislocates his shoulder, an injury which required surgery and not only wiped out his pro dream with the Bombers, but robbed him of returning to the Golden Gaels to play a role in the school’s national championship last fall.
And being away from a sport that has been all-consuming, it would seem, has a tendency to set a guy off on a little soul-searching trip.
“You know, the game of football has been with me my entire life,” said Carter after Bomber meetings on Friday. “It’s been something I could rely on and it almost becomes a part of your personality. It’s something you grow to love and having it taken away is such a strange feeling. It’s like your alter-ego is taken away. It’s like Bruce Wayne not having Batman any more.
“Having the opportunity to be just Bruce Wayne for a year and a bit gave me a deep appreciation of how much fun it is to be Batman. Now I’m able to get back out there and put on the cape and badge and go out and fly around on the field. It feels great.”
So, just a pre-season game? Hardly.
Named the winner of the President’s Trophy as the top defensive player in Canadian university football in 2008, Carter figured he was on the fast-track to fame and glory in the Canadian Football League. Sure he was a little bummed about not being drafted until the sixth round as some organizations wondered whether his skills could convert to the pro game, but the Bombers gave him an opportunity.
And then that opportunity was snatched away in an instant.
And so when the phone rang again this winter with the Bombers offering another shot, it’s understandable how Carter’s appreciation for the game had changed. He’s hungrier, he’s more committed and he’s more determined to squeeze every down out of the game before that chapter of his life closes.
“There’s a sense of urgency because there’s only so many shots you can take and only so many opportunities provided to you to take those shots,” Carter reasoned. “Dee Sterling was my roommate in college and he stuck in Edmonton with the Eskimos. And you know, watching him on TV and some of my other friends, Mike Giffin (of Montreal), (Saskatchewan’s) Rob Bagg… these are all guys I played with, these are all guys I love and now these are all guys I want to play against. Seeing their success makes me want it a little bit more.
“People who go through major injuries or setbacks at first get discouraged,” Carter continued. “But being hurt was a blessing in disguise because it gave me the chance to mature as an athlete and become more of a student of the game.
“Right now I really feel I’m up for the challenge and I’m ready to go. Adversity builds character, right? Now I’m going to go out and lay it all the line and leave it up to the coaches.”
ed.tait@freepress.mb.ca
Pre-season
finale
Blue Bombers at Tiger-Cats
When: Sunday, noon
Where: Ivor Wynne Stadium, Hamilton
Radio: CJOB
TV: Shaw
