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Martels Carter Jr. - Football - University of Kentucky Athletics 4

MartelsCarter Jr.

  • position Defensive Back
  • height 6-0
  • Weight 194
  • class Freshman
  • Hometown Chattanooga, Tenn.
  • High school Paducah (Ky.) Tilghman
BIO

High School
• A unanimous four-star recruit by all the major recruiting services
• The top-ranked recruit in the state of Kentucky, according to 247Sports Composite and Rivals
• Rated as the sixth-best safety in the country, according to Rivals
• A two-way player at wide receiver and defensive back
• Coached by Sean Thompson at Paducah Tilghman High School
• Through 12 games as a senior, combined for 25 tackles, three tackles for loss, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and three interceptions on defense
• Also added 35 receptions for 490 yards and five touchdowns receiving and 12 carries for 122 yards and one touchdown catching on offense
• Helped his team to a 15-0 record and a Class 4A State Championship title, just the fourth-ever state football championship for the school, and the first since 2009 when it was 3A
• Named Most Valuable Player of the state tournament
• Had nine catches for 169 yards along with five solo tackles, two assists and one tackle for loss in Paducah Tilghman’s 27-20 state championship win over Franklin County
• Named to the Courier-Journal’s First-Team All-State defense in 2024
• Named to the “Class of the Commonwealth” team by the Lexington Herald-Leader
• Was a preseason Mr. Football candidate
• Prior to his junior season, was coached by Martels Carter at Brainerd High School in Chattanooga, Tennessee
• Chose Kentucky over Auburn, Clemson, Oregon and Tennessee

Personal
• Born in Fulton, Georgia
• Son of Martels Carter
• Siblings are Deno Montgomery, Ameer Carter, Ameerah Carter, Grayson Carter, Kenya Carter, Kimia Carter and the late Kenndii Carter
• Dad, Martels, played football at Austin Peay (1995-2000); brother, Deno Montgomery, played football at EKU (2011-15); sister, Kimia, played basketball at North Carolina Central (2019-23)
Major is undecided

Martels Says
• Nickname is “C4”
• One thing most people don’t know is that he is a good bowler
• One word to describe him on the football field is “electric”
• The highlight of his life so far was winning the MVP award after winning the state championship
• If he could only eat one thing for the rest of his life he would choose chicken wings

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