Junior Christopher Carter (93) is one of many football players who have been injured during games while  helping put opposing teams in desperate situations. During the Rowlett game on Friday, Sept. 1, Carter ran the ball when an opponent rushed and tackled him; the Rowlett player’s helmet collided with Carter’s leg, causing a clean break and forcing him to sit out the rest of the game.

“It hurt a lot,” Carter said. “I didn’t know I was injured until I got off the field. I was overwhelmed with sadness because [I] couldn’t go back into the game.”

Carter was devastated when he was told he wouldn’t be able to play in any future games until his leg was fully healed in six to eight weeks. However, his fellow teammates and coach continue to encourage him, picking him up when he’s down.

“I’m in this for the kids, whatever the reason for them leaving I want to support them in whatever they want to do,” head football coach Michael Odle said. “I want to encourage them to do whatever they want and to walk across that stage with Farmer pride and their heads held high.”

The coaches take notice of every single player who gets injured and go straight to the trainers to check up on each player’s capability.

“We have three great trainers here that do a good job of letting us know the availability of the players,” Odle said. “It’s really the trainers call if they can come back to practice.”

Not only can an injury affect how a player performs during practices, it can also make him feel distant from his own team.

“When you get an injury you can’t really do much and it becomes sad,” Carter said. “You can’t do as much with your friends because you feel like you’d drag them down so you kind of distance yourself from your friends.”

Even though he can’t play in games or practice with his friends during the recovery period, Carter won’t give up so easily on his dream. Injured but not broken, he refuses to let go of his passion for the sport.

“I do plan on playing in the future,” Carter said. “I plan on playing [in] college all the way up to as high as I can go.”

While Carter’s injury could put an obstacle on his path to college, he and his coach feel as if he can overcome this injury with enough determination.

“The players can still get academic scholarships and get athletic scholarships,” Odle said. “Injury doesn’t help but it doesn’t mean you can’t. Colleges look for what you can bring to the table; if you have an injury that is minor it won’t change their minds about you.”

Regardless of the types of injuries players face, they often either sink into a pit of despair they feel as if they can’t get out of or they grow from the experience and only make their injury a temporary obstacle.

“The only thing I have to say is that if you feel like you aren’t a part of the team or you are feeling down, remember that we are all here for you,” Odle said. “Me, the other coaches, the trainers and your teammates. It’s like a wounded soldier; you guys can still fight and keep pushing forward, and that is what makes you guys great football players.”