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NEXT GAME

Sunday | Preseason

B.C. Lions vs. Edmonton Eskimos

1 p.m. Commonwealth Stadium,Radio: TSN1040 AM

But the Florida native has also been in this position before, a place where people depended on him, where they needed him to act like a pro and not like an entitled diva. Carter says he understands how the unflattering perception of his character has been created and he says he’s doing his best to change that. He also wants this market to get to know him before they judge him because, this time, he’s not going to squander the opportunity which has been presented to him.

“I can understand people misunderstanding me,” Carter says. “But for people to say, I don’t like him, that’s kind of drastic. They’ve never met me. Hopefully, by the time it’s over, I’ve flipped those people over to my side.

“Everything is in place for me to have a great season. Now it’s up to me to put the work in and make the most of this opportunity.”

And who knows. Maybe this courtship can blossom into a full-blown love affair.

Photo by RICHARD LAM / PNG

Carter, a 6-foot-5, 205-pound ballet-dancer-of-a-receiver, signed with the Lions as part of a tumultuous off-season which has reshaped the franchise in so many ways. With the arrival of Claybrooks, Reilly and 14 other new starters, he slides into training camp relatively quietly but his ability to form an instant chemistry with Reilly is critical to the master plan.

It also stands in contrast to his first decade in the game, where trouble and controversy seemed to follow Carter around like a black cloud. He started as an 18-year true freshman at Ohio State, the alma mater of his Hall-of-Fame father Cris, where he was projected as a first-round NFL pick and ended four years and four schools later. Along the way, he was ruled academically ineligible at OSU, transferred to Coffeyville Community College where his quarterback Cayden Cochran opined via Twitter, Carter is “lazy, whiny … a horrible person and a complete cancer.”