Coming out of Walton High School in Marietta in 1987, Chuck Carswell was considered perhaps the state’s top running back prospect. However, after redshirting as a freshman at Georgia, he realized he was going to have to move positions if he was to see the field. More than three decades since his Bulldog career ended, Carswell remains one of the top defensive back-return man combinations in UGA football history.
In three seasons at Georgia, Carswell returned 88 punts—the third most in school history—for an 11.5-yard average, and two touchdowns. He remains one of only three Bulldog players to total 1,000 yards via punt returns. For each of his three seasons, Carswell averaged at least 10 yards per punt return and remains the only freshman in the annals of UGA history to lead the SEC in punt returns. He also averaged nearly 25 yards per kickoff return for his career. At cornerback, Carswell totaled 116 tackles and 13 passes broken up. Including bowl games, he made seven career interceptions at Georgia. The Bulldogs’ lone representative in the 1992 Japan Bowl (college all-star game at the time), Carswell was with the Miami Dolphins for a couple of years before totally switching gears professionally.
We caught up with Carswell from his home in the Atlanta area.
UGASports: Chuck, when did you realize you maybe had what it took athletically to play football beyond high school?
Carswell: “My best friend at the time, Shad Santee, lived across the street from me. I think Shad and I realized around the same time—about eighth, ninth grade—that eventually playing football in college was a real possibility. For me as a running back, I started to periodically make things happen—make moves—to where I thought, ‘Hey, this (playing football) could potentially be something.’ For instance, after making a few three-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust-like runs of two, three, five, eight yards, I’d suddenly bust off a run which required more finesse running, including switching the ball on instinct, once I got to the linebacker level followed by the defensive back level. I realized not many other running backs at my level were doing those things and I suddenly thought of football as a reality I could chase. Whether I could play major college football, Division II, Division III, whatever, that was probably not formulated at the time. But I did recognize I had a skillset to probably play beyond high school.”
UGASports: Were there other schools besides Georgia you considered attending? And, in the end, why did you decide to become a Bulldog?
Carswell: “Yes, by the time I was a junior in high school, NC State was a consideration. Shad and I had talked about possibly going there together. (Santee wound up playing wide receiver and tight end at NC State from 1988-1991.) Playing for Coach Erk Russell down at Georgia Southern was an idea too. And although Georgia Tech, because of the city of Atlanta, might have seemed like a better option for me, I just didn’t feel at home at Georgia Tech. My dad grew up in Irwinton [Georgia] and my mom in Cherokee County. So, when I visited Athens and UGA, I felt more at home. It was just a different feel. When I first stepped on the University of Georgia campus and spent the weekend around future teammates like Bryant Gantt and Demetrius Douglas, and the litany of great players back then—like the Lars Tates, the Bill Goldbergs, those guys—it was close to over for me. And, when I realized what all the school offered academically, it was an easy choice to attend and play football at Georgia.”
UGASports: Still, when you arrived on campus, it seemed Georgia was already loaded at running back. Did you find that to be accurate?
Carswell: “I would say so (laughing). As mentioned, Lars Tate (who finished his career as UGA’s No. 2 all-time leading rusher) was already there. Tim Worley and Keith Henderson would be coming back (both were dismissed from UGA for the 1987 season for academics before returning in 1988). Besides me, we also signed running backs Brian Cleveland and Rodney Hampton (considered by some recruiting services as the top two tailbacks in the state of Texas), Larry Ware, who had won the Alabama Mr. Football Award [as a senior in high school], and Alphonso Ellis, who had just broken all of William Andrews’ records at Thomasville High. So, I'm sitting there looking at all these great backs, wondering what I could bring to the table. And I literally thought that there was a real possibility that I could be a 5-foot-10, 190-pound running back for the University of Georgia—that is, until I saw Rodney Hampton do some things as a true freshman while I was redshirted in 1987. I had worked as hard as I possibly could to maximize every ounce of energy and effort, ability that I had, but Rodney was just on another level. I realized I was going to be playing behind him for a long time. I didn’t have to sit in on too many meetings in the running back room and look to my left, look to my right, and realize I was on the low end of the totem pole of Georgia running backs.”
UGASports: Where did you go from there?
Carswell: “I just refused to sit and wait. And if that meant changing positions, then I was all for it. I was already starting to handle punt returns, but I wanted every opportunity to get on the field. I knew entering the spring of my second year (1988) that Georgia’s right cornerback spot was open. So, I went to Coach [Vince] Dooley and said that I’d love to move from running back and give defense a shot. I also had a conversation with our defensive coordinator, Bill Lewis, and they decided to let me give it a try.” (Notably, Carswell hadn’t played on defense since pee-wee football.)
UGASports: Speaking of Coach Lewis, there were articles in newspapers that spring of him praising you playing the cornerback position. That leads us to ask: How does one abruptly change roles to a position he has essentially never played yet is contending for a starting spot as a redshirt freshman at a major college program?
Carswell: “Both my parents worked hard. My dad was a grinder and big believer in always doing your best. My mother believed that every day you were above ground, it had the potential to be a great day. Similarly, I believed that every day had the potential to be a great day. And any day I got to run around with a helmet and cleats on for two-three hours playing or practicing football, that was a hell of a day! I benefitted from having similar characteristics of my mom and dad. But I definitely needed to develop my instincts when I was moved to the defensive backfield. And we had some incredible defensive backs, like Ben Smith and David Hargett, who helped me with that when I was a freshman.”
UGASports: Your redshirt freshman season was Vince Dooley’s 25th and final year as Georgia’s head coach. How impactful was the coaching change from Dooley to Ray Goff?
Carswell: “Personally, it affected me tremendously. I spent two seasons with Coach Dooley, the first of which I was only 17 years old and trying to figure out life. As a redshirt freshman the next year, just as it appeared like I had the potential to have an impactful career at Georgia, we suddenly have a brand-new kind of leader in Ray Goff. For as young as I was at the time, honestly, I was a little frustrated by the coaching change—but, of course, I understood it. I was also excited Coach Goff was going to be our head coach. There were a few changes, but nothing major, including to the coaching staff. Although the coaching change might have been a little nerve-racking for some of us, I think we all had confidence that Coach Goff could eventually pull that thing off. And, obviously, we went through some struggles in his first two seasons (1989 and 1990), but we definitely got it turned around [in 1991].”
UGASports: During spring practice of your sophomore year, you broke your neck after intercepting a pass and being tackled from behind. You were fortunate because there was no nerve damage. Still, you were forced to miss the 1989 season. How did you respond?
Carswell: “I was devastated and concerned. Still, although a CAT scan at the Shepherd’s Spinal Clinic revealed my neck was clearly broken, there was no movement of the bone, no nerve damage, and no numbness. So, my attitude was to let’s get this (neck) healed up and I can then get back out on the field. While the healing of the bone was monitored, I lived on this neck machine in the weight room we had at Georgia back then. Man, I got to where I could put the pin at the very bottom and I could do 20 reps in any direction you wanted. I lived on that neck machine. I mean, I had trouble finding dress shirts that would fit me because my neck had gotten so big. More so, I still got to participate during the 1989 season. Coach Goff was great by allowing me to be close to the staff, remain close to the team, mentor a couple of kids, those kinds of things. So, I was traveling, moving around with the team quite a bit, while my neck was healing and as I was getting ready to get back on the field in 1990.”
UGASports: It was during the 1990 season that you made a game-clinching interception in a one-point upset win over Alabama in Sanford Stadium, when, according to Larry Munson, “Carswell saved our fanny!” What do you recall from that significant moment?
Carswell: “Honestly, I was really frustrated with myself throughout the 1990 season. I just don't think I had undergone the conditioning I needed for that season. I had gotten so strong and was enjoying the contact and the hitting, but I didn’t have too many great moments that season. Neither did the team. (After a 3-1 start to the 1990 season, including the 17-16 win over Alabama, Georgia won only one of its final seven games.) But we did have that big win over Alabama. And we had struggled for most of that game. My interception, when it happened, and, as you mentioned, having Larry Munson call the play the way he did solidified it as a great moment for me. I think it makes sense to call the interception the landmark moment for me while I played at Georgia.”
UGASports: After the 4-7 record, Georgia promptly began its “Operation Turnaround” season of 1991—and indeed you guys turned it around, going 9-3 in 1991. What made “Operation Turnaround” a success?
Carswell: “I think it was a variety of things. For one, we were inexperienced, young, and beat up pretty good in 1990. So, we had a lot of players who had been developing with some experience under their belt entering the next season. Still, the coaching staff helped build our confidence beginning with winter workouts that year. Whereas before I think we started winter workouts around 7 a.m. each day, it was 5:30 a.m. for the ’91 workouts. And we generally started off each session doing some high-intensity stuff: bear crawls, over-under drills, shuffling left then right, stuff like that. I think those workouts impacted quite a few players. From there, I think a lot of guys realized how much quicker and stronger they suddenly were. Not only were attitudes changed, but I think we realized that we could reach fitness levels beyond what we originally thought. And we agreed that we all needed to be in it together, and push one another while demanding higher levels of excellence from each other.”
UGASports: How did it feel to be elected special teams captain by your teammates towards the end of your senior season?
Carswell: “It's one thing when fans cheer you on and are excited for you. It's another thing for your coaches to be excited for you, supporting and promoting you. But it’s a whole different story when you’re recognized by the guys you see on the field when you look to your left and to your right, the guys you’ve struggled with, the guys who compete alongside you as teammates. It’s a tremendous honor to be recognized by them. Your teammates have seen both your successes and failures on and off the field. And to be recognized by them, it was a humbling moment but a very special one for me—for sure.”
UGASports: After Georgia didn’t have a single player selected in the 1992 NFL Draft—the first time that had occurred in more than 50 years—you signed a free agent contract with the Miami Dolphins. And although you never played an official game in the NFL, you signed a couple of contracts with the Dolphins as part of the team for more than two years (1992-1994). What was your experience like in Miami?
Carswell: “To have the opportunity to sign a contract with the Dolphins and be part of their training camp and be on their developmental squad was proof to me that I had put in the work since my neck injury. The fact that I was a formidable option at defensive back in the NFL was a tremendous pat on the back. And, think about some of the greats I was surrounded by while I was in Miami: quarterback Dan Marino, receivers Mark Duper and Mark Clayton, tight end Keith Jackson, linebacker Bryan Cox, and safety Louis Oliver, who I had played against when he was at Florida. Also, [Mean] Joe Greene was a defensive coach when I was there while, of course, Don Shula was the head coach. Because of my time in Miami, I got a chance to actually extend my career and do what I've always loved to do, which is play the game one more day.” (A couple of years later, Carswell was set to join the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europe before injuring his knee just three days before he was supposed to fly to Amsterdam.)
UGASports: Professionally, where did you turn to when it appeared you needed to look beyond football?
Carswell: “I was getting older, there was no pro film of me, and I had somewhat of an injury-filled past; therefore, it was becoming more and more challenging for me to get back on a football field. So, I decided to go another path. I did non-profit work for kids in public housing in Miami, and did the same for kids at Bankhead Courts (a former housing project) in Atlanta. After doing that for a few years, I got into the mortgage business and did that before getting out right before the financial collapse happened. From there, I got into personal training.”
UGASports: Yes, we read that you’re currently a high-level CrossFit coach. How did you get into that?
Carswell: “All of my years of weight room experience led me to helping out at a dance studio in Decatur, Georgia, where I was teaching 12- to 15-year-old girls strength and conditioning (chuckling). But, from there, I was soon a personal trainer for a woman, and then for multiple people. Suddenly, I’m out of the mortgage business and am a personal trainer, where I’d load up my vehicle with gear and equipment and travel to people’s homes. In 2008, I opened up a gym in Decatur, CrossFit East Decatur. Not long afterward, I got the opportunity to work and travel with CrossFit, and I’ve been doing that ever since.”
UGASports: Please tell us about your family.
Carswell: “I met my wife, Shirley, in Miami. We’ve been together for 28 years, including married for 26 this year. Our daughter, Elijah Devine, kept her mom’s name and has been with me since she was 10 months old. Shirley and I also have a son, Caleb. Both of my kids went where I attended high school, Walton.”
UGASports: Considering your job, and you work on most weekends, we’re guessing it has been difficult for you to associate with the UGA football program. Is that accurate to say?
Carswell: "And that hurts a little bit. Also, when I was at Georgia, most of the guys who came back had successful NFL careers. I was no Bill Goldberg, no Ben Smith, no Rodney Hampton when I played football. I have missed out on a lot of opportunities. But I will always cherish the time I had at the University of Georgia. It was definitely a great experience! I hope to spend more time in Athens, because I know that ‘once a Dawg, always a Dawg.’"
