‘Big Mac’ proves doubters wrong

Gators’ freshman defensive end eager to show his stuff.

TAMPA — Youngsters often emulate their siblings, and Zachary Carter was no different.

His brother, Frank Carter III, is three years older and played little league football, providing Zachary with early exposure to the game.

Zachary, a freshman Florida defensive end, competed in the Mike Alstott Football Camp at age 5 and started prac tic ing with hi s older brot her s oon a f t e r ward. Their father tried to steer them toward baseball, but Frank III and Zachary had NFL dreams.

“They wanted to be Bucs and they were very competitive kids,” their father, Frank Jr., said. “For Zachary, it was the little brother syndrome that drove his competitive spirit. But baseball was too slow for him.

“He just can’t be standing around on a field. He needed something to keep him active because he has a lot of energy. He had never played actual football, but he was determined to do it.”

Without that drive, Zachary wouldn’t have been able to play in elementary school. Initially, he was too heavy to play in the Tampa Bay Youth Football League.

“I c o u l d b a r e l y ma k e weight my first year,” Zachary said. “I was bigger than everybody else.”

H e h a d t w o c h o i c e s : wait until next year or get smaller. He chose the latter and started a rigorous diet and workout routine at 7 years old.

“He used to do 1,500 jump ropes a day just to make weight , ” hi s f at her s a i d. “So he was doing that and eating salads. It was awful, That helps me work out to but he turned into a jumpthis day.” rope expert. You give him a Finding his way: As a jump rope and he will show freshman, Zachary made off with it.” the varsity team at Hillsbor

Zachary added, “Yeah, I ough High School in Tampa wanted to play really bad.” and started on the offensive

He played nose tackle his line with his brother, who is first season and then moved now an offensive lineman at to middle linebacker. But at Jackson State. age 9, trying to maintain his Max Warner, a former weight became too much of Hillsborough assistant who a burden. “I decided to stop is now the head coach at playing,” Zachary said. “I let Bloomingdale High in Valfootball go for three years.” rico, thought Zachary needed

Cutting season: When to be on the JV team in 2013. he hung up his cleats and “He felt like I made the put down the jump rope, team because of my brother the pounds poured on. His and I didn’t deserve it. He classmates teased him for told me I wasn’t good,” Zachbeing overweight in middle ary said. “I was one of two school and he struggled in freshmen on varsity and he sixth and seventh grades. was trying to put me down.

“I used to get made fun It just changed my mindset.” of,” Z achary said. “They Zachary’s parents believe called me ‘Big Mac.’ I used Warner’s harsh words were to walk through the hallmeant for motivation. It ways and they had chants. upset Zachary at the time, They weren’t trying to hurt but lit a fire that still burns. my feelings. A lot of people “Coach Warner basically just messed around with me told him he can’t just ride because I was fat.” on his brother’s coattails,”

Frank Jr. admits he made his mother, Iva, said. “You matters worse by taking his have to put in the work.” son to Wendy’s on the way Z a c har y moved t o t he home from school. “Everydefensive line as a sophobody knew him there because more and quickly caught on. we went every day,” he said. During his junior season, he

But as the boy’s weight would review his highlights increased, his father recogon Hudl, a website that pronized the issue and started vides video review and persending him to a personal formance analysis for teams trainer. He took up kickboxand athletes, every weeking and started playing AAU end with his brother over basketball. the phone.

“With all that running, it “They were doing that didn’t take him long to start g a me a f t e r g a me, u n b e - shedding those pounds,” knownst to us,” Iva said. his dad said. “Once he saw “We found out after the fact the difference, I think he that they were doing that embraced it and said, ‘OK, behind the scenes. That’s this is what I want to look how close they are.” like.’ That was his motivaBy the end of 2015, Zachtion.” ary was a consensus 4-star

Zachary returned to footrecruit and had more than ball at 14 and began lifting 20 scholarship offers. weights. “Toward the end of His mother is from Baton eighth grade I started trainRouge and liked LSU, his ing at a gym and I felt good father was a Florida State fan again,” he said. “I started and his older brother rooted to see results. I wanted to for Ohio State. But Zachary change my look and I did. knew early in his recruit- ment that Florida would be his destination.

“He was the only person chomping in the house,” Iva said. “I even bought a flashing LSU light that I plugged in his room every night. This boy still liked the Gators.”

As the recruiting process played out, Carter’s parents wanted him to attend Clemson because of Tigers coach Dabo Swinney. But Florida coach Jim McElwain won them over during their trip to Gainesville.

“I liked Coach Mac the first time I met him,” Frank Jr. said. “I asked a lot of pointed questions and he handled it well. He was good. So at that point, I was comparing to Coach Swinney and he passed the test with flying colors. I gained confidence in him being an extension of us.”

Iva added, “We were standing in the hallway on the visit, but Coach Mac couldn’t see us. The players had a team meeting and he was at the door hugging everybody as they came in. You would think every player was his child the way he loved on them. I was just standing there like, ‘Wow. That is great.’ It’s not like that everywhere.”

Carter officially joins McElwain and the football team in June when he enrolls at Florida. He will leave behind a house full of awards and trophies he accumulated during his high school career.

The 6-foot-5, 250-pound defensive end recently ran into Warner, the coach who challenged him as a freshman, at an awards ceremony for Tampa-area athletes.

“He told me he was proud of me,” Carter said. “Hearing that was big. Ever since middle school, I’ve been trying to prove everybody wrong — coaches, peers. I had a lot of doubters. But when that light turned on for me, I never looked back.”