Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Carter praised after first start
Sophomore safety fit right in with defense
CORAL GABLES — As it seemed more and more certain last week that Amari Carter would be called on to make the first start of his college career — and do it in place of Jaquan Johnson, Miami’s lone preseason AllAmerican — Hurricanes defensive coordinator Manny Diaz had a message for his young safety.
None of Carter’s teammates or coaches expected him to replace Johnson.
They merely wanted Carter to play to the best of his ability, and that, they told him, would be enough.
Carter, a former standout at Palm Beach Gardens, heeded the advice.
The sophomore managed both a tackle and broke up a pass in his first start. And with Carter in the secondary, the Hurricanes managed to hold FIU to just 170 passing yards, with 125 of those coming in the fourth quarter after Diaz had pulled many of the starters from what was eventually a 31-17 win.
With Johnson still nursing a hamstring injury that could keep him out of Thursday’s ACC opener against North Carolina, Carter may be called on to start again. If that happens, his coaches say they’re confident Carter can build on what he did against FIU moving forward.
“Amari is a very intelligent player. He played like a smart guy. He played like he knew what was going on, knew what they were going to do on the play before it happened,” Diaz said. “The play where he almost made the pick on our sideline, he knew the route that was coming and sort of almost baited the quarterback to throw it to the guy. We know that Amari will tackle, and he runs to the ball, and is tough and those type of things. He looked like a starter, which was encouraging to see.”
Added Hurricanes coach Mark Richt, “Amari is a guy who’s been very conscientious since his first day. He’s like any freshman when they get here. It’s a matter of learning what to do and gaining the faith and trust of your coaching staff. He had enough opportunities before this moment that it wasn’t like his first shot out of the cannon. I think he had a good feel for what he was supposed to do and how he was supposed to do it and that gives you confidence. … As the game progressed, he had a lot of success and the defense had success. It just builds.”
For his part, Carter — the South Florida Sun Sentinel’s 2016 Palm Beach County Defensive Player of the Year — said he felt he performed well against FIU and that the experience of it all gave him the confidence to know he can handle starting on one of the ACC’s top defenses.
“It felt natural. It’s what we’ve been preparing for, coming out on the field, practicing,” he said. “I just had to stick to what I’ve been doing, just sticking with the
No. 1s and it went well.”