Abdul Carter: 'I'm Thankful I Had This Time' at Penn State

MIAMI GARDENS | Abdul Carter bid farewell to Beaver Stadium in December, when he and teammate Dvon J-Thomas walked onto an empty field together following the Nittany Lions' 38-10 playoff win over SMU. After a dramatic postseason, in which he was injured and briefly morphed into Darth Vader, Carter said goodbye to Penn State football at the Orange Bowl.

Just hours after the Nittany Lions' 27-24 loss to Notre Dame, Carter's agent Drew Rosenhaus told ESPN's Adam Schefter that Carter will declare for the 2025 NFL Draft. Until the draft, Carter's representation will position him as potentially Penn State's first No. 1 overall pick since fellow defensive end Courtney Brown in 2000. ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr ranks Carter as the No. 2 overall prospect in the 2025 draft.

Penn State coach James Franklin called Carter and fellow end Dani Dennis-Sutton "warriors all year long" and specifically for their performances in the Orange Bowl. Carter, playing with a heavily wrapped left shoulder, made two tackles for loss, broke up a pass and nearly recovered a fumble that Dennis-Sutton forced. Carter did that nine days after getting injured against Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl, a game in which he played just 18 snaps. Carter played 66 snaps against Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl, the most among Penn State's defensive linemen.

"Abdul, I'm really proud of him," Franklin said. "He gutted it out today, showed tremendous mental and physical toughness and was disruptive in the game."

After their media session, Penn State’s Abdul Carter and Dvon J-Thomas share a moment on the field at Beaver Stadium. pic.twitter.com/z2becDvdpF
— Mark Wogenrich (@MarkWogenrich) December 21, 2024

After playing through a shoulder injury against Notre Dame, Carter wanted to freeze the moment in the locker room.

"I can’t really think about the game right now," he said. "I’m just thankful for the opportunity to be here. I’m thankful I had this time with my people, the people I’ve spent the most time with and the people I love, here today."

In his only season playing full-time defensive end at Penn State, Carter bloomed into one of the nation's most impactful players. He led the country with 23.5 tackles for loss (finishing his career with 39.5) and was Penn State's first consensus All-American since Saquon Barkley in 2017. The Big Ten defensive player of the year, Carter also thought he should have been included in a list of Heisman Trophy contenders.

Carter was nominated for multiple national awards, including the Nagurski and the Chuck Bednarik, but won none of them. Carter also didn't get a vote in the 2024 Heisman Trophy voting, a case he tried to make personally after the Nittany Lions' final regular-season win over Maryland.

"I still feel like I'm the best defensive player, but not just defensive player, I feel I'm the best player in general," he said before Penn State played SMU. "You know, we get categorized as defensive players, but we impact the game as much as offensive players. And it doesn't have to be [the best] defensive player, it's the best player overall. But I just use it all as motivation."

Carter's status against Notre Dame was a high-end topic since he was injured in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year's Eve and missed most of the game's last three quarters. The defensive end, whom Rosenhaus called one of the first picks of the 2025 NFL Draft, attempted to return against Boise State but could not. Since then, the defensive end posted references to Darth Vader on social media, suggesting he planned an epic comeback in the Orange Bowl.

"I've been an NFL agent for 36 years," Rosenhaus said during a pregame appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. "This is absolutely one of the toughest human beings I've ever been affiliated with."

According to Kiper, Carter is "instinctive and fast flying to the football," making him a draft target for a variety of defensive styles. Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Allen has called Carter the "best defensive player in the country." But on Thursday night, Carter reflected only on the locker room around him.

"Football is a blessing," Carter said. "It’s changed my life in many ways, countless ways. I can’t even list all the ways. You can look around to see the passion that we all have, how badly we wanted this. Unfortunately we didn’t get the job done. We gave our all and we gave everything we had. We're not going to hang our heads."

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