Carter: 'Nobody wants us to be here. Nobody expected us to be here.' |
Ariana Pensy
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- Friday, December 20 2024
CLEMSON - Clemson’s journey to the championship game has given Clemson an underdog mentality, something that senior linebacker Barrett Carter takes personally as that has been his mantra throughout his football career.
“We love it, especially just us having the opportunity to go into somebody’s stadium and try to come out with a victory. It’s fun. Playing at home is awesome and good teams win at home, but great teams win on the road and us being the underdog, it’s cool. I like it,” Carter said. “I feel like I was the underdog my whole life just not being the biggest, not being the strongest. I think I’m the fastest, but I feel like that’s just been my mentality personally and that’s just the mentality we have within our team. Nobody wants us to be here. Nobody expected us to be here. But, it doesn’t matter what other people say. It’s what we do.” The result of the ACC Championship game certainly fueled the underdog mindset for Clemson. After going into halftime with a 17-point lead, SMU came back in the second half, especially in the fourth quarter as they put up 17 points in the fourth to tie the game with 16 seconds left. Following a 41-yard kick return from junior Adam Randall, fellow junior quarterback Cade Klubnik threw a dart to redshirt sophomore receiver Antonio Williams to set up the 56-yard field goal from true freshman kicker Nolan Hauser to prevent overtime and send the Tigers to the playoffs. Carter was actually preparing for overtime when Hauser made the game-winning kick and said it is one of the most memorable moments of his career. “Probably the most memorable moment, most memorable play that I’ve been a part of since I’ve been here at Clemson. So, it was just a special moment. (We) just got to carry this momentum into the next few weeks,” Carter said. Klubnik may not be hoisting the Heisman, but he had a strong season. His completion percentage is about the same as last year, just under 64 percent, while his passing yards and touchdowns have dramatically increased. Going into Clemson’s playoff game against Texas this coming Saturday (4 p.m. / TNT), Klubnik has thrown 33 touchdowns and only five interceptions. This game may prove to be emotional for Klubnik returning to his home state for the first time in his collegiate career. However, Carter said Klubnik is locked in like he has been this entire season. “Cade’s locked in. He’s been locked in the whole year regardless of who we play and I know he’s excited to get home and show what he can do again,” Carter said. “But, it’s really been the same Cade. I have not seen him be more intense or any less intense than he has (always) been. So, he’s just locked in and ready to (go) lead us to a victory.” The playoff journey will also be emotional for players like Carter and graduate safety R.J. Mickens who are in their final year. Mickens is also from Texas and went to high school with the Longhorns’ starting quarterback, Quinn Ewers. Despite the significance of this game personally and for Clemson, Mickens and the rest of the Tigers are locked in. “He’s a worker regardless of where we’re playing, who we’re playing. But, I know he’s excited to go against his old high school quarterback, Quinn. But, RJ’s been the same. This matchup hasn’t changed the way he’s attacked it and he’s such a smart guy,” Carter said. “So, (he) already has his plan down with Texas and has a good feel (for) what they do. But, this hasn’t changed him at all, just going back to his home state. So, he’s been the same guy.”
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