Jalen Carter's journey at Georgia is almost at an end.

The Florida native has gone from freshman depth to sophomore key contributor to one of the best players in college football. He's a likely top 10 NFL draft pick next April. Through it all, Carter has mostly avoided the media spotlight.

That changed on Thursday when Carter took center stage at the Chick-FIl-A Peach Bowl Media Day.

Carter's reflections took him all the way back to his recruitment as a member of the Class of 2020. He recalled moments that made him know he wanted to be a Bulldog.

"When I came to Georgia, when I first was getting recruited, I saw the connection," Carter said. "I saw all the guys were together. They would go out together, eat together, stuff like that. I was like, yeah, I like this team."

Future first-round picks such as Jordan Davis, Devonte Wyatt, and Travon Walker took Carter under their wing. They emphasized to him that the connection piece of the defensive line is vitally important.

With those players now in the NFL, Carter knew he had to take on a bigger role in that area this year. He also focused on improving other aspects of his game.

"I felt like I could strain more with anything," Carter said. "That comes from running 53s (53 yards, the width of a football field), running 100s (100 yards, the length of a field), pass rushing, or playing the run, running to the ball after it’s been thrown. I felt like I could strain more with that and I feel like I’ve did that a lot."

But Carter's junior season hasn't gone exactly according to plan. He spent the early part of the year battling through an ankle injury suffered in the season opener against Oregon. Carter returned against Missouri, but exited after sustaining an MCL sprain.

"It was rough with my first big injury," Carter said. "I had the team on my side, teammates telling me I’m good, let’s do this, let’s work. It motivated me to come back and finish out the season."

Carter returned in a limited role against Florida and to more or less full-time duty the next week against Tennessee. His insertion back into the lineup has taken the Bulldogs to a new level defensively.

Over Georgia's last five games, Carter has amassed 23 total tackles, seven tackles for loss, and three sacks. His head coach Kirby Smart called his athleticism "not natural" for a defensive lineman.

"He's somebody you've got to account for every snap. He can change the game certainly inside. He's a very disruptive guy in the run game and in the pass game," co-defensive coordinator Will Muschamp said. "Sometimes it's hard to help in protection for an inside player. It's much easier to chip on the edges and be able to have some protection. You can turn the protection. We're very aware of that, that we've gotta create situations where Jalen is one-on-ones, and that's what we try and do as much as we can."

Smart couldn't single out one highlight from Carter's Georgia career. But the one that will be most remembered came in the SEC Championship Game, when Carter picked up LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels with one arm and raised one finger in the air with the other.

"Probably in Little League, I did that before," Carter said. "It came back up to my head. It just happened fast. It was a big moment for me. I think it was with the spin on the tackle. I rose up and just took him with me."

When asked what he was thinking during that play, Smart responded, "Please don't throw him down. Please don't throw him down."

Carter's name has also been in the headlines recently for other reasons. ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay caused a stir by saying Carter had "character issues" that could cause him to fall in the draft.

The rest of the Bulldogs rushed to Carter's defense, vouching for his character on social media. That support meant the world to Carter, who said he didn't expect that kind of thing.

As for the man himself, Carter said he didn't let the comments affect him. He brushed them off as soon as someone alerted him to the news.

Even with the Internet outrage buzzing, Carter is handling the comments the same way he's handled his career—by putting his head down and working in silence.

"I really let it go as soon as I first heard it," Carter said. "I just kept moving on. I told my team, let’s just go to the playoffs and ball out."