Gerald N. Carr (born June 28, 1959) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

and coach. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Southern Illinois Southern Illinois, also known as Little Egypt, is the southern third of Illinois, principally along and south of Interstate 64. Although part of a Midwestern United States, Midwestern state, this region is aligned in culture more with that of th ...

before starting a coaching career that spanned from 1981–2012 with

North Mecklenburg High School North Mecklenburg High School is a high school in Huntersville, North Carolina. The school mascot is the Viking, and the school colors are royal blue, red, and white. Founded in 1951, the school was integrated during the 1960s. The principal is ...

, Southern Illinois,

Davidson Davidson may refer to: * Davidson (name) * Clan Davidson, a Highland Scottish clan * Davidson Media Group * Davidson Seamount, undersea mountain southwest of Monterey, California, USA * Tyler Davidson Fountain, monument in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA * ...

Akron Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city prop ...

Washington State Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. Named for George Washington—the first U.S. president—the state was formed from the western part of the Washington ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

, the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

, Wake Forest, the

Carolina Cobras The Carolina Cobras were an expansion franchise in the Arena Football League. The team was formed prior to the 2000 season, which endured a player strike. The team was originally based in Raleigh, North Carolina, but moved to Charlotte followin ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

, Baylor, Buffalo,

Southern Southern may refer to: Businesses * China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China * Southern Airways, defunct US airline * Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US * Southern Airways Express, M ...

, and the

Virginia Destroyers The Virginia Destroyers were a professional American football team based in Virginia Beach, Virginia. They began play in the United Football League (2009–2012), United Football League (UFL) in the 2011 UFL season, 2011 season. They played their ...

Early life and education

Carr was born on June 28, 1959, in

Davidson, North Carolina Davidson is a suburban town located in northern Mecklenburg and Iredell counties, North Carolina, United States, on the banks of Lake Norman. It is a suburb in the Charlotte metropolitan area. The population was 10,944 at the 2010 census, and in ...

. He went to high school in

Huntersville, North Carolina Huntersville is a large suburban town in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, United States. A part of the Charlotte metropolitan area, the population was 61,376 at the 2020 census, making Huntersville the 15th largest municipality in North Caroli ...

, at North Mecklenburg. He was offered a full scholarship from

University following high school. After his first season, Carr left the school's football team upon his family's request. He rejoined the team early in the 1978 season following an injury to starting

John Cernak. In the team's final practice game before the season, Carr completed 11 of 18 passes for 154 yards and two touchdowns. After starting a few games, he was replaced by Arthur Williams. He did not play much again until October 1979, when he came off the bench and lead the Illinois to a 31–7 victory over

Wichita State Wichita State University (WSU) is a public research university in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It is governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. The university offers more than 60 undergraduate degree programs in more than 200 areas of study in ...

. His teammate Joe Barwinski said Carr "was tearing Wichita State apart". The ''

Southern Illinoisan ''The Southern Illinoisan'' is a daily newspaper based in Carbondale, Illinois, known locally as "The Southern." As of October 2014, it has a daily circulation of 21,270, and a Sunday circulation of 26,958. It is one of the major regional newsp ...

'' reported, "Every time Wichita State penetrated the Salukis' pass protection and closed in on Carr, off he'd go, darting and dancing away from would-be tacklers. The whole scene, hilarious at times, was reminiscent of the old "

Roadrunner The roadrunners (genus ''Geococcyx''), also known as chaparral birds or chaparral cocks, are two species of fast-running ground cuckoos with long tails and crests. They are found in the southwestern and south-central United States and Mexico, us ...

" shows, where the coyote gets foiled every time." Carr was the team captain in his senior year, 1980. He graduated with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

Coaching career

Rather than pursue a career in professional football, Carr returned home to Huntersville and became a coach at

, serving as assistant football coach and head coach of the JV baseball team. Under his coaching, the JV baseball team compiled a 16–1 record in the season. He also was a substitute teacher in Mecklenburg's school program. Afterwards he returned to

Southern Illinois University Southern Illinois University is a system of public universities in the southern region of the U.S. state of Illinois. Its headquarters is in Carbondale, Illinois. Board of trustees The university is governed by the nine member SIU Board of Tr ...

, and served as a graduate assistant during the 1982 season while working towards a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

. In 1983, Carr was hired by the

Davidson Wildcats The Davidson Wildcats are the NCAA Division I intercollegiate athletics teams representing Davidson College of Davidson, North Carolina, United States. A member of the Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10), Davidson College sponsors teams in ten men's ...

to be their offensive backfield coach. He was the team's receivers coach and academic coordinator from 1984–1985. In 1986, he was given a position by the

Akron Zips Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city prop ...

college football team. He would coach from 1986–1988 at Akron, serving as academic coordinator, quarterbacks coach, receivers coach, and tight ends coach during his three seasons with the school. Carr left Akron and was hired as the receivers coach of

in 1989. On January 10, 1991,

Arizona Wildcats football The Arizona Wildcats football program represents the University of Arizona (UA) in the sport of American college football. Arizona competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Pac- ...

coach

Dick Tomey Richard Hastings Tomey (June 20, 1938 – May 10, 2019) was an American football coach and player. Tomey served as the head football coach at the University of Hawaii at Manoa (1977–1986), University of Arizona (1987–2000), and San Jose State ...

announced he had signed Carr to be the Wildcats' quarterbacks coach. Tomey said, "Gerald will give us some ability to be more explosive in our passing offense, because he came from an explosive offense at WSU." The Wildcats compiled a 4–7 record in the

1991 season File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, 1991 Russian presidential election, elected as Russia's first President of Russia, president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated ...

. Carr left Arizona after one season, and joined the

North Carolina Tar Heels The North Carolina Tar Heels are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The name Tar Heel is a nickname used to refer to individuals from the state of North Carolina, the ''Tar Heel ...

in the same position. He spent three seasons, from 1992–1994, with the Tar Heels, helping them achieve a 10–3 record in 1993. After three seasons, he joined the professional

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). He was given the position of wide receivers coach, and was hired in February 1995 by

Ray Rhodes Raymond Earl Rhodes (born October 20, 1950) is a former American football player and coach. Rhodes played wide receiver and cornerback for the New York Giants and the San Francisco 49ers. He served as the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles an ...

. After his first season, the Eagles acquired

Irving Fryar Irving Dale Fryar, Sr. (born September 28, 1962) is a former American college and professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for seventeen seasons. Fryar played college football for the Universit ...

, who he coached to

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

seasons in

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

and

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...

. Fryar set the franchise record for single-season receptions in 1996. Carr was fired following the 1998 season. After his departure from the Eagles, Carr was given a position as the receivers coach for the

Wake Forest Demon Deacons football The Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represents Wake Forest University in the sport of American football. The Demon Deacons compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Atla ...

team. He left after one season to join the

of the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

(AFL). He served as the team's offensive coordinator, quarterbacks coach, and wide receivers coach during 2000. He joined the

Indiana Hoosiers The Indiana Hoosiers are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of Indiana University Bloomington, named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Indiana. The Hoosiers participate in NCAA Division I, Division I of the Nationa ...

following the season, and served as their passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach. On February 11, 2002, Carr joined the

Kentucky Wildcats The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30,473 ...

to be their running backs coach.

Guy Morriss Guy Walker Morriss (May 13, 1951 – September 5, 2022) was an American football coach and player. He served as the head football coach at the University of Kentucky for two seasons (2001–2002) and at Baylor University for five seasons (2003� ...

gave him the task of assistant coach before the season started. Morriss said, "Gerald has earned the respect of the players already in the short time he has been here. I like the way he has handled the players very demanding, but fair. He's also proven that he is a good, knowledgeable coach." Carr spent one season at Kentucky before spending 2003–2005 at

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the fir ...

. He served as the school's assistant head coach and running backs coach. He resigned in December 2005. He was replaced by

Wes Phillips Wes Phillips (born February 17, 1979) is an American football coach and former player who is the offensive coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He is the son of former Denver Broncos, Buffalo Bills, and Dal ...

. In 2006, he was announced as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the

Buffalo Bulls The Buffalo Bulls are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University at Buffalo (UB) in Buffalo, New York. The Bulls compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I level as a member of Mid-Am ...

. He left Buffalo in January 2007. He was retired until 2011, when he accepted an offer to be the

Southern Jaguars The Southern Jaguars and Lady Jaguars represent Southern University in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA intercollegiate athletics. Southern University's 13 athletic teams participate in the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) whi ...

' offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. He left before the season began to join the

of the United Football League (UFL). He spent two seasons as their running backs coach, winning the

2011 UFL Championship Game The 2011 UFL Championship Game was the third championship game of the United Football League and took place on October 21, 2011, the concluding weekend of the league's truncated third season. The game was won by the Virginia Destroyers, who, in ...

before retiring from coaching. Running back

Dominic Rhodes Dominic Dondrell Rhodes (born January 17, 1979) is a former American football running back. He played college football at Midwestern State and was signed by the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent in 2001. Rhodes was also a member of ...

won UFL player of the year in 2011.

Later life

After Carr's coaching career he founded a construction company called All-Pro Builders.

References

External links

Sports-Reference profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carr, Gerald 1959 births Living people American football quarterbacks American football wide receivers Players of American football from Mecklenburg County, North Carolina Coaches of American football from North Carolina People from Davidson, North Carolina People from Huntersville, North Carolina Southern Illinois Salukis football players Southern Illinois Salukis football coaches Davidson Wildcats football coaches Akron Zips football coaches Washington State Cougars football coaches Arizona Wildcats football coaches North Carolina Tar Heels football coaches Philadelphia Eagles coaches Wake Forest Demon Deacons football coaches Carolina Cobras coaches Indiana Hoosiers football coaches Kentucky Wildcats football coaches Baylor Bears football coaches Buffalo Bulls football coaches Southern Jaguars football coaches Virginia Destroyers coaches