Who is Antonio Carter II? Why a Rhode Island transfer is coveted by Notre Dame, Power 5

Antonio Carter II got on the phone with his former high school coach on Monday, trying to make sense of how much a football perspective could change in one month. When Carter entered the transfer portal in mid-April, he was a hopeful defensive back at Rhode Island looking for something bigger. Now he’s visiting Notre Dame after seeing Ole Miss and Wisconsin, with Florida likely up next. LSU offered earlier this week, too.

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As for Notre Dame, that high school coach could make his own recruiting pitch.

“Make sure you remind them that your coach played at Notre Dame,” said Clint Johnson, now the former head coach at Oak Ridge. “He’s a Florida kid, he knows Miami, Florida, Florida State. He was definitely enamored with Ole Miss and Lane Kiffin, getting a chance to play in the SEC. I think the opportunity to come see a school like Notre Dame is a dream situation for him. He’s never been in that neck of the woods. I told him, you need to go see it.”

“His stock is off the charts right now.”

Johnson played receiver for Notre Dame under Lou Holtz and was part of arguably the greatest modern day recruiting class in school history, which included Jerome Bettis and Bryant Young. Johnson has been out of coaching since the pandemic and now works as a Florida rep for Riddell, the helmet manufacturer.

When Johnson was last back at Notre Dame for the Blue-Gold Game a year ago, he didn’t think to connect with Marcus Freeman’s staff for recruiting purposes. Back then, the idea of an FCS defensive back matriculating to a College Football Playoff contender was too remote to see. Now, Notre Dame needs the help, with Carter having two years of eligibility remaining.

blessed to receive an offer from the university of notre dame! pic.twitter.com/OghfAYdNbh

— Antonio Carter (@AntonioC_viii) May 5, 2023

The Irish return just four upperclassmen at safety: DJ Brown, Ramon Henderson, Xavier Watts and Thomas Harper, a graduate transfer from Oklahoma State who’s coming off shoulder surgery. Defensive coordinator Al Golden said during spring practice that Notre Dame would evaluate the portal because Irish depth was lacking, especially when mid-year enrollees Adon Shuler and Ben Minich missed spring with shoulder and finger injuries, respectively.

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Carter played four seasons at Rhode Island but redshirted as a freshman because he appeared in just three games and then got a bonus year as a sophomore due to the blanket NCAA waiver for pandemic relief. As a junior and senior, Carter played mostly cornerback and finished with 105 total tackles, 5.5 TFLs, one interception and 17 PBUs. He appeared in all 22 games for Rhode Island, starting 21.

“There’s nothing that’s gonna blow your socks off when you’re talking about Rhode Island football,” Johnson said. “He’s been a steady piece his entire career there. He’s had solid games and contributed, but it’s not like they’re playing Notre Dame or Florida State. You’re not playing the big boys, so people don’t tune in.

“But when people finally got ahold of his film and started seeing his body type and what he’s capable of, people fell in love with him.”

Notre Dame likes Carter’s 6-1, 200-pound frame at safety, although Johnson said other schools like him at cornerback or nickel. Florida State started calling Johnson about Carter this week. Washington has also been in touch. Basically, Carter’s hope that there could be something bigger than the Colonial Athletic Conference has been validated. He ranks No. 20 on The Athletic’s best available list from the portal.

That all begs the question of how Carter ended up playing football against New Hampshire and Monmouth in the first place.

There’s an explanation for that.

Carter started his high school career at Olympia High School in Orlando but played in a defense where he wasn’t asked to do much more than play a Cover 2 shell. When he transferred to Oak Ridge for his senior year, Johnson knew his team just got better, but he wasn’t sure if Carter was a future college prospect. He just knew he liked the new kid, who wore his old No. 8.

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“I knew he had a ton of upside, but you know how that goes. You never know what that upside is gonna be,” Johnson said. “He was always one of those kids, first in, last out type of work ethic.”

Starting at cornerback for Oak Ridge opposite Carter was Marvae Myers-Glover, a two-star prospect who picked up an offer from Louisville and eventually signed with Middle Tennessee. Carter saw the interest his teammate got and wanted more of it himself. But that never really happened. Rivals rated Carter as a zero-star recruit. 247Sports barely had a page for him at all.

“Fortunately enough, Rhode Island just fell in love with him,” Johnson said. “He really just needed to work on his footwork when he transferred in. Playing Cover 2 shell, he was playing in the flats a lot. He didn’t have to run. He didn’t get a lot of work. He had skills, but he hadn’t perfected any of it. He was just long and lanky, which is what you wanted in a DB. He’s very smart, dependable, never hurt.

“He was a coach’s dream, really.”

Notre Dame will know more about where it stands with Carter after his multi-day visit to South Bend this week. If the Irish pull Carter out of the portal, he’d been a value add to a defensive backfield that needs safety help. Johnson isn’t sure exactly what Carter will prioritize in his second college decision, but playing time might matter most. Getting a graduate degree in the next two years — Johnson said Carter was close to a 4.0 student in high school and wanted to attend medical school — could play a part.

“He wants to be on the field and he wants to play. That was my conversation with him. Don’t fall in love with a name, fall in love with a place you’re gonna play,” Johnson said. “He’s not a kid that’s gonna make waves. He’s gonna go with the flow. You tell him to attack that tree, he’s gonna attack that tree and tear the bark off it.”

“He’s a Notre Dame kid, no question.”

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Johnson would know.

(Photo of Johnson wearing No. 8: Courtesy of Clint Johnson)

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