Jalen Carter shows skill, character in dominant return from injury
ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia defensive lineman Jalen Carter could have called it quits when he got hurt earlier this season. Projected by many as a top-5 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft next spring, the former five-star suffered an ankle injury in the opener, fought through the pain of that to play before spraining his MCL against Missouri. That one caused Carter to miss some time, and some thought that his Georgia career was over. Not Carter though. He returned in a limited capacity against Florida and has been on a different level during the Bulldogs’ last four games, totaling 17 tackles including 3.5 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks while also forcing a pair of fumbles. Kirby Smart believes that it’s because Carter still had something to show.
“The assumption you make is the generational wealth is on the line. I mean, I look at it as he’s earned it. Generational wealth, it’s not given, right? He hasn’t had an opportunity to play the all year and show his skill set and really show his stamina,” Smart said on Monday. “In all his years playing here, he never got to play that many snaps, so he’s creating value for himself with the way he’s playing. And, you know, if you look at the top-end of the draft, it’s one of those things where it’s a huge difference between pick 3, and pick 10, and pick 14. It’s a lot more different than it is down there towards the end. So it’s not about that for him. It’s about, you know, being with his teammates, wanting to do something special. He was really close in a brotherhood with those guys last year. And they’re gone now, and he’s trying to do something that they didn’t do. You know, and he’s given us all he’s got.”
That thing that last year’s group – Travon Walker, Jordan Davis and Devonte Wyatt – didn’t do was win an SEC Championship, and Carter will have a chance to do that this year. Georgia clinched its spot in the conference title with a win over Mississippi State, a game in which Carter had a career-high seven stops. That came just one week after the Bulldogs beat the then-top-ranked Tennessee Volunteers as Carter forced a pair of fumbles. He was named SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week and Bednarik Award Player of the Week for his showing. Carter is also a season-long finalist for the Rotary Lombardi Award which goes to the nation’s top line of scrimmage player.
Carter and company take on in-state rival Georgia Tech this Saturday for the regular season finale. It’s then on to the SEC Championship Game against LSU on December 3rd in Atlanta. Kickoff for Saturday’s game, what in all likelihood will to be Carter’s final home game in front of the the Sanford Stadium crowd, is set for 12:00 p.m. ET on ESPN.
