There are few names in sport synonymous with an organization. Even when they move on to another team, their name runs deep within the roots of a franchise’s identity. Think Tom Brady and the New England Patriots, Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls or Babe Ruth and the New York Yankees.
For the Carleton Ravens football program, that name just might be Nathan Carter.
The running back, who played his final year as a Raven in 2021, has been a spark plug in the Carleton backfield for five seasons and recently, his name entered the Carleton record books as one of the best running backs in program history.
During the 2021 Panda Game against the uOttawa Gee-Gees, Carter became the all-time Carleton rushing yards leader with 2,987 yards in his U Sports football career. In accomplishing the feat, Carter surpassed Carleton legend Mark Brown, who previously held the record for 35 years since he set it in 1986.
Former Ravens head coach Steve Sumarah, now the offensive coordinator for the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds, said Carter has been important not only to the team but the program as a whole.
“We always say he is the original junior Raven that continued on with the program,” Sumarah said. “This guy came from the beginning with this program and has been a marquee guy all the way through his career.”
Sumarah said Carter’s leadership is contagious throughout the clubhouse.
“He has been just a quiet leader who just goes out there every day and does what is asked,” Sumarah said. “He put his head down, carried the ball, didn’t take much accolades in doing it and let other people talk about him. I think that speaks about the character of Nathan Carter.”
On the field, Carter has also had a large impact on his teammates. Running back Mitch Raper played alongside Carter for his entire time at Carleton. Raper, like Carter, completed his fifth and final year of eligibility in 2021.
“I love playing with Nate,” Raper said. “Him and I have gotten to share a lot of cool memories together on the field playing the same seasons together and things like that. I always look forward to playing with him.”
Raper credited Carter’s personality and ability to lead by example as some of his key attributes as both a football player and person.
“He is not overly loud or anything like that,” Raper said. “He’s a pretty chill guy, but on the football field, he’s a different kind of animal. He’s a hard working guy, keeps his head down and has always been probably one of the hardest workers on our team.”
According to Raper, Carter’s work ethic goes a long way in leading his positional group to success.
“He’s really let the running back group understand that as much as it is a position where you get the ball, your success is reliant on others,” Raper said. “He’s just shown the young guys, myself included, at our position, just what it takes to have on-field success.”
Brown, the man who Carter surpassed as all-time rushing leader, said he is happy Carter was able to achieve the feat.
“I thought he was going to break it last year, ” Brown said. “It was a nice run. The program was defunct for a while so I got to squeeze a few extra years out of it I guess, but ultimately I’m glad for him.”
Brown, who was inducted into the Ravens Hall of Fame in 1996, still works on campus in the IT department and is a Ravens football season ticket holder. He said Carter breaking the record brought him back to his football playing days over 30 years ago.
“My old teammates have reached out to me and teased me a bit,” Brown said. “It’s nice after this many years to still be thought of from time to time, to have done those things many years ago.”
“I think that’ll be something that, all being well, Nathan will be able to experience as he moves on from his football career,” he said.
Carter did not respond to multiple requests for comment from the Charlatan.
As he does move on, Carter’s presence on the Ravens will be missed. But that doesn’t mean what he brought to the program will be forgotten.
“It’s his sixth year with the Ravens program,” Raper said. ”He just shows guys every day what the standard is to be a great football player.”
Featured image by Spencer Colby.
