ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE FOOTBALL KICKOFF

July 25, 2024

Barrett Carter

Clemson Tigers

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: We'll take questions for Barrett.

Q. You are playing Georgia in your home opener in Atlanta. Your hometown is only 40 minutes away, depending on traffic. Minus that, are you going to be able to bring any family to that matchup?

BARRETT CARTER: Yeah, I let my parents usually handle my tickets. They already told me they've got a lot of calls and texts about that game specifically.

I'm excited to have a lot of my family there. The more the merrier. That's how I see it. I always just let my parents handle that. I like to just focus on the game, focus on what's to come.

Q. What can you say about everything that's been asked of you from Coach Swinney as well as the staff, that extra that you give, so beyond the film, the practice? What is that extra that's made you the player that you are?

BARRETT CARTER: I think the staff and Coach Swinney, they've challenged me to become more of a leader. I've really taken that and tried to run with that ever since the season ended.

Clemson, we've had a bunch of great leaders in the past. I want to be the next in line with that. But they've challenged me to become more of a vocal leader. I've tried to do that every single day, try to preach to our guys to have the right mentality. No matter what our coaches throw at us, attack it head on, which will be good.

That's what they've asked me to do. Of course, I have a long way to go still, but I think I'm heading in the right direction.

Q. Can we talk about your relationship with Trotter and about how much he's affected your on and off the field decisions? How has he affected your life?

BARRETT CARTER: Yeah, just so thankful that God crossed Trotter and I's path. That was my roommate for two and a half years. I mean, regardless of what happened on the field with Trot, we're going to go home to the same place. We have no choice but to make up at the end of the night.

That's my brother for life. I was just chatting with him a couple weeks ago, seeing how he was doing. The thing I love about Trotter is he's all about his business. Me, I'm going to talk a lot of trash, whatever. Trot, he's going to kill you with silence. That's what I can respect the most about Trotter.

He really just taught me he's the definition of hard work and just being about your business. I've tried to really instill that into myself and how I attack every single day, my mindset towards things.

Trot is going to be my brother for life. He's probably going to be maybe my best man, I don't know, whenever that day comes. Trot, that's my dog, for sure.

Q. Sammy Brown lived up to the hype in the spring game. What are your first impressions of the freshmen?

BARRETT CARTER: First of all, he looks the part already. Physicality-wise, I would say he's probably stronger than all of us already. He's 18, 19 years old, whatever he is.

Sammy, he's wired differently, to say the least. He's come in just hungry and driven with no ego at all. He's tried to pick my brain as much as possible just to learn the playbook and learn the ins-and-outs of how to be successful at Clemson.

I'm glad that we have him in his program. I like to take credit that he committed because I hosted him on his OV.

I'm looking forward to him showing the world who Sammy Brown is, what he's all about.