Duron Carter in action at Toronto's BMO Field on Saturday, July 7th, 2019. Photo: David Derner
Winning is the only thing on his mind. Still, that’s not to suggest Duron Carter isn’t a little extra juiced to walk into the shiny Mosaic Stadium for the first time as a visitor; even if he did it a couple of times in the older venue during his first CFL stop with the Montreal Alouettes. Like the true veteran he is, business will always come first.
“I’m more excited to hit the field with my current Lions teammates because I feel like we didn’t have a great showing last week and left a lot on the field,” the charismatic Carter said in a chat with bclions.com.
“For our team to get back out there and show what we have, that feels good.”
A quick check of the stats shows Carter only suited up in 25 of his 78 career starts to date in green. Yet it was with the Roughriders where the wide receiver established himself as a unique talent- sometimes as a defensive back where he returned two interceptions for touchdowns- who had the capability to change the game with a big play at any moment. Some of those may come flooding back once he and the Lions report for duty on Saturday afternoon.
“Of course it will be a little more exciting against my former team, but every day it’s about us and we’re the ones that decide who wins and who loses.”
That big play prowess was a big reason the Lions made his addition one of their priorities when the free agent period opened back in February. Although he has tallied 24 receptions for 240 yards through five games in orange, he’ll admit he hasn’t yet played to his potential. Although you can point to an end zone play in Toronto where he couldn’t quite stay in bounds and a couple of near misses in the home loss to Edmonton and think it’s coming. What better place than in football-mad Regina?
“Aw, hell yeah,” responded Carter to that question.
“I would love to have a big game there. That’s what I plan for every week. But again, getting a win, that’s what I prepare and hope for more than simply having a big game. If I do and that contributes to our team’s success, perfect. I’ve had 200-yard games before and lost. Those don’t feel great.”
Now in its third season of housing the province’s beloved Riders, the newer Mosaic has far more bells and whistles than the now-demolished older structure. One thing that travelled across the street was the crowd noise for opposing offences league wide. Carter knows first hand how rabid the green-clad supporters can be and that’s one thing he and the Lions can use as motivation to get a leg up in this huge home and home series.
“I’ll never forget the first time I played there as a visitor,” he said.
“There was so much energy there and it wound up being one of the things that drew me to Saskatchewan before I signed there. It’s a great football environment and I’m sure our guys will be amped up once they see and get to the new stadium. There is nothing like it in the CFL and whenever you get a chance to go there, it’s definitely a levity to the game.”
While mostly good-natured, the fans on the visiting side of the field have usually done their homework on little anecdotes they can include in their trash talk.
“They’ll always have something, but I would hope they would reserve it to keep me out of trouble,” chuckled number 89.
“Don’t feed the beast, right?”
There you go. All the more reason to focus on winning. Perhaps nothing wrong with a little post-game fun if the situation presents itself.