ZAVIER CARTER 2021 PROFILE

-HAPPEVILLE CHARTER 2020 STATS:

74 TACKLES (57 SOLO)

7 SACKS

by LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN

@LonnPhillips

An early enrollee, Hapeville Charter's Zavier Carter is a dedicated leviathan of pass-rushing devastation for LSU to work with.....but will he play at linebacker or defensive end???

Arising from the same high school which developed LSU's all-time single season Sackmaster Flash, Mr. Arden Key, Zavier was a highly sought after recruit across the Power 5. but the Tigers won him over quickly: Carter committed early and the Georgia-born defender never waivered.

While he's gone under the radar since his commitment last summer, Carter could very well be one of the Tigers' better overall pass rushers this coming year....could he also become a born again linebacker???

Simply put, Carter possesses a torrent of obliterating skill which, once harnessed, could see the young pass-rushing linebacker become a bona fide All-American talent.

Carter is one of 2021's most under the radar Tigers (alongside LB Greg Penn, CB Demarius McGhee, TE Jalen Shead and DE Landon Jackson) though Coach Baker and LB assistants Alec Osbourne & Jake Olsen will afford Zavier every chance of grabbing playing time.

Is Carter too thin to play linebacker?

Will he be able to execute around the middle of the field just as well as he can at the line of scrimmage?

While Tommy Moffitt will no doubt help the Tigers' freshman gain weight, I feel it may take a full season for Carter to get adjusted to his new linebacker role, although it is worth noting exactly why LSU's defensive staff made the switch:

Though the Hapeville Charter DE played with his hand in the dirt most of the time, rushing the quarterback during his 4 years playing in Georgia high school's competitive sprawl, Zavier was a highly sought after recruit across the Power 5. Regardless of UGA or Saban, the Tigers won him over quickly: Carter committed early and the Georgia-born defender never wavered.

Zavier is extremely versatile, even dominating at wide receiver during a few 7 on 7 games, or chasing ball-carriers 40 yards down the field for the stop, preventing touchdowns....for a defensive end, the Georgia-native was an athletic anomaly.

With his tremendous length, strong tackling ability, and side to side burst of pace, Blake Baker believes he can mould the pass rusher into a linebacker....albeit with a caveat.

To see how far his progression has materialized, I had to take a look at a few scrimmages from his Spring football debut, Now, I seem to have a handle on how LSU will utilize the freshman:

Though Defensive Coordinator Daronte Jones favored a four lineman and two or three linebacker front, when the defense shifted to a 3-4 scheme for its cheetah package, Carter was often deployed as one of the OLBs, usually blitzing the quarterback and disrupting the left tackle, freeing up Joe Evans, Maason Smith or Neil Farrell Jr for big time interior penetration.

Carter may not have a 6 sack Tiger debut, but he doesn't have to in order for him to stake his place along Daronte Jones' defensive front: all he has to do is wreak havoc off that edge....the aforementioned inside guys, or the DEs on the field (Ojulari, Gaye, Anthony, Fonua, Webb) would benefit massively.

Figuring out whether he's best utilized as a linebacker or defensive end is one big picture question for the Arden Key protege, although it's one the LSU defense don't have to solve in 2021.

This season, simply let Carter take the field, attack the line of scrimmage and see what he's made of at the linebacker position. There's more than enough options at the spot to safely give all of our freshmen (or second year guys like Sampah or White) an opportunity, revolving around a potential starting fulcrum of Damone Clark, Mike Jones Jr and Navonteque Strong.

PROJECTIONS: 19 Tackles, 1.5 Sacks, 2.5 TFL, 1 FF

By LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN

@LonnPhillips

Copyright 2021 Uninterrupted Writings Inc

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