Sitting Down With Ethan Karcher

Anyone who was at the game versus weatherford last week more than likely saw what this writer thinks is a rising star in the form of No. 23, Ethan Karcher. Be it hitting the opposing lines hard from either the RB or linebacker position, Karcher let the eagles (and opposing coaches) know that Kingfisher has multiple weapons on offense and defense.

I was able to catch up with Ethan and talk a bit about the game as well as other topics. With a slight smile and shrug of his shoulders, he graciously agreed and here's how it went:

Hombre Lobo: Ethan, thanks so much for sitting down with me today, I know you're busy getting ready for Chis.... um, well I'm sure you're busy.

Ethan Karcher: Yeah no problem

HL: Dude you look jacked out there. What did you do over the summer? PEDs? SARMS? Good clean living? What's up?

EK: Yeah no steroids or anything haha. Really all I did was work hard at summer pride and did a lot of running on my own.

HL: Not going to give up your secret, I respect that but seriously you can go to all the team scheduled workouts and stuff but in order to rise above the rest, you gotta put work in on your own. Reminds me of a heckuva baseball player I know. So in both games so far you made definite impacts on both sides of the ball, but the weatherford game seemed almost like a coming out party for you where you really showed your stuff. Be straight with me here, was it just a fluke because the eagles weren't that good or was your performance something Jacket fans can look to seeing more of?

EK: weatherford is a decent team, they are big and physical so I don't see it as a fluke by any means. Our team showed a lot of improvement between Clinton and weatherford and I think this is a sign of things to come from not just me but all sorts of people. I really see a lot of potential in this team and if we can continue to improve each week, I think we may surprise some people come playoff time.

HL: You know, I love that you use words like "team" and "we", I think that's what makes good teams great. Everyone has a job to do and they can't do their job if everyone isn't pulling on the same rope.

EK: For sure, I want to be a leader on this team and be able to help everyone, including myself, get better every day. This Senior class has a lot of guys like that and I'm really trying to soak all that in so that when I'm in their position, I can help the younger guys carry on the tradition we have here.

HL: I know you're a hard worker but surely you have some down time, what sort of things do you like to do away from the field.

EK: Really, I just like hanging out with my teammates.

HL: Probably talking football.

EK: Probably, haha.

HL: You're an animal. A DAWG in the making. I like it. So do you have any music that gets you going or pre-game rituals? How about a favorite pre-game meal?

EK: I like the chicken strips at the Shed. Always good food there no matter what you get. Lil Baby has a couple tracks I like - Dreams and Nightmares or Freestyle. As far as pre-game rituals, right after we break the huddle I go and pray.

HL: Awesome stuff, be sure to check out what Shane Hale is posting on TheSofaKing blog. He's a former professional baseball player and brings some wisdom about faith from an athlete's point of view sometimes. EK, I appreciate your time and I've got one more question for you but please don't be offended. What the heck is that smell and what is on your shoe?

EK: Oh yeah, sorry about that. I walked by Noah's locker on the way here and I think he's got some sort of mold growing in there. Crazy stuff.

HL: Crazy, indeed. Ethan, thanks again for your time. I'm sure your fans will appreciate this and good luck for the rest of the season.

EK: Thank you.

Next game for the Yellowjackets will be Friday, 9/9 vs. Chisholm at 7:30