Carter Shines; Just Call Him ‘Young Money’
The Story: Forget about the thin mountain air. Redshirt sophomore running back Nate Carter put on a clinic for the Huskies in their 31-20 loss at Utah State on Saturday by rushing for 190 yards for 20 carries.
NATE THE GREAT: Carter had a few breakthrough performances last season — he ran for 123 yards at Vanderbilt and 136 yards at UMass — but he made a splash on Saturday, especially early. He averaged an absurd 9.5 yards per carry.
• The Huskies scored on their first possession because Carter picked up 75 yards, including a 52-yard run that propelled them down the field. He later had a 44-yard gain that put UConn in position to score again and take a surprising 14-0 lead on the Aggies.
• Carter’s stellar game was partially overshadowed by his second-quarter fumble, which seemed to turn the momentum back in favor of the home team. It was the first time Carter fumbled in his two seasons on the field.
• What was refreshing to see is that Carter had the vision and patience to let the offensive line set up blocks but also had the power and grace to make things happen himself when he needed. Those are the traits of great running backs, and while Carter is too young to be in those conversations, it was a remarkable performance in many ways.
• Let’s forget that only 30 teams played on Saturday and celebrate that Carter leads the nation in rushing.
HISTORY IN THE MAKING: Carter entered elite company with his 190 rushing yards, but consider that it has been more than 15 years since a UConn running back has had more.
• The last UConn player to gain more yards in a game was quarterback David Pindell, who ran for 197 yards in a silly performance against USF in 2018.
• But if you want to take a trip through the wayback machine, it was the legend himself, Donald Brown, who was the last running back to gain more yards in a game. He ran for 199 yards in his quasi-homecoming at Rutgers in 2006. (Maybe we forget how dominant Brown was; he ran for more than 200 yards four times!)
WHAT DID JIM MORA SAY? “I think Nate came out really fast and broke some long runs. He’s a tough kid and he’s a great competitor. … Even though he had statistically a really good game, he’s bitterly disappointed. He’ll go back and he’ll try to beat himself up over one fumble, and yeah, he’s got to have better ball security, but some of the plays he made today, it’s what we want to see. It’s what he’s capable of.”
WHAT DID CARTER SAY? “I did what I had to do to help the team. I can’t give any credit to myself. My coaches did an amazing job throughout the week with helping me out. … There’s still some stuff I’ve got to clean up. I had a costly fumble in the second quarter which changed the momentum of the game, and that just can’t happen. That’s one of my non-negotiables as a running back, so I’ve got to fix that. I’ve got to get better. Regardless of what the stats were, I’ve just got to be better.”
Morning Reads
• Is there a realistic chance that athletic director David Benedict could fill that same position at Auburn? Benedict, if you’ll remember, was the Tigers’ chief operating officer for two years before he was hired at UConn. (Hearst Connecticut Media)
• The women’s basketball team has another player with an NIL agreement as Caroline Ducharme swiped right on an opportunity to serve as an ambassador for the dating app Bumble. (Hearst Connecticut Media)
• Kamorea “KK” Arnold won her second gold medal with Team USA at the FIBA U18 3×3 Women’s World Cup in Hungary over the weekend. She’ll be a high school senior and then will join up with Geno & Co. next summer. (Hearst Connecticut Media)
