Now the Elder Statesman, Gators DL Zachary Carter is Ready to Take the Lead
The Florida Gators will need all the help they can get this year on its defensive line after losing two veterans in Marlon Dunlap and Kyree Campbell to the 2021 NFL Draft.
While the needs were certainly filled via the transfer portal with Antonio Shelton (Penn State) and Daquan Newkirk (Auburn), the return of fifth-year player Zachary Carter was perhaps the biggest blessing the team received this offseason.
Carter, now the elder statesman of the group, surrounded by youth and new players, is ready and willing to lead and to help the team win by any means necessary.
"I've been here, this is going into my fifth year. I've sat and watched a lot of older guys in front of me and learned a lot from those guys," Carter said on Thursday, the first day of Spring football for Florida. "Just taking a lot from them, so I want to do the same for a lot of these younger guys."
Those "younger guys" Carter is referring to are players like Jalen Lee and Gervon Dexter, both players entering their sophomore seasons and freshmen such as Chris Thomas and Desmond Watson, early enrollees this spring. So far, so good, Carter says for the young players of the group, and he's excited to see more.
“I’m excited about this group of freshmen. We have a great group of freshmen, especially at D-line," Carter noted. "They came, they’re ready to work, they’re hungry to learn more. I’m excited how they could possibly help us this year.”
When asked about one of the freshmen, Watson, Carter seemed in awe of his size, and when asked if he had ever seen a freshman as big as Watson, listed at 6-foot-5, 432 pounds, he responded with a simple, "no."
"Hey, but that's what we breed in Tampa (Fla.)," Carter exclaimed. "That's the kind of guys we breed in Tampa. But I'm really excited for big Des. He's going to have a bright future. He's a thick kid, though. thick kid. Dang."
Dang, is right. Watson is easily the largest human on the team currently. Hailing from the same area as Carter in Tampa, it's no surprise that the veteran defender is already taking a liking to him.
"Desmond is impressive, man, he (is) pretty impressive for his size and I know he'll continue to, you know, he’ll continue to trim up and stuff but he has a lot of potential."
While leading by example, and making sure his team performs to the best of its ability is one of his goals this year, Carter came back for more than simply athletics, he wants to get his degree, a degree in journalism he says. While he wasn't able to get his degree when he expected to, in three to four years, he made it a priority this year.
Between that and leaving his legacy at the program, that's what was most important to Carter now returning for his final season in Gainesville.
"I just know that this football stuff, it doesn't last forever," he said.
"I'm excited that I could possibly have a future in the NFL, but everybody says it stands for 'not for long.' So it's just good to have that degree. I think more guys should have that attitude towards football and school, but everybody's in a different situation and positions, but that was a big thing for me."
Donning a new number, No. 6, - a number he chose because of former Florida defender Dante Fowler Jr. - Carter is ready to do big things for Florida this year.
"I'm really excited for this defense."
