2024 Tight End Carter Nelson Is An Elite Athlete And An Intriguing Prospect For Notre Dame
This past weekend, Notre Dame enjoyed a tremendous victory, blasting the Clemson Tigers by a 35-14 score. That performance made a tremendous impact on all the recruits who were in attendance to enjoy the experience. It was certainly a weekend to remember for 2024 Ainsworth (Neb.) High School star tight end Carter Nelson, who was offered by the staff despite not making the trip to South Bend like originally planned.
Having already secured a tight end in the 2024 class with Jack Larsen, the possibility to potentially pair Larsen and Nelson together is incredibly intriguing. On the surface, Nelson is an impressive athlete and it is easy to see why the Irish staff is making a run at him. When you dig a little deeper, not only is Nelson a tremendous talent, but he is arguably the most unique athlete in all of high school football and the 2024 recruiting class.
DYNAMIC POTENTIAL
At 6-5 and 210 pounds, Nelson is the type of athlete who can pretty much do everything he wants to on the football field. For the 9-1 Ainsworth squad, he is the team’s leading rusher with 761 yards and 14 touchdowns on 119 carries, averaging 6.4 yards per carry. Nelson is also the team’s leading receiver with 525 yards and 11 touchdowns on just 28 total receptions.
He has done all that while also playing a lot of reps as the team’s quarterback. On the season, he has thrown for 663 yards and 15 touchdowns on 83 attempts. The Junior has also been careful with the football, only throwing three interceptions on the year.
It doesn’t end on the offensive side of the football for Nelson’s impact. Doubling as a dynamic safety for Ainsworth, he hauled in six interceptions and totaled 41 tackles.
Nelson is also the team’s top punter to boot, averaging 39.6 yards per punt.
There is no question who is the best player on the field every Friday night in the small area of the Cornhusker state. For Notre Dame, it appears like a no brainer fit but interestingly, Nelson does play eight man football currently.
You would be hard pressed to find an eight man player that Notre Dame has recruited heavily. That doesn’t take anything away from Nelson’s talent, which is acceptable, but it does make him a bit of an outlier.
ATHLETE OFF THE GRIDIRON
Everyone knows those kids who are just naturally good at everything they do. That’s Nelson to a tee. While what he does on the football field is extremely impressive, you could argue that he is even more of a dynamic athlete in track and field.
It should be no surprise after watching his film that Nelson is incredibly explosive as a jumper. Nelson is a premier long jumper, posting a personal best jump of seven feet in the high jump. That isn’t a total surprise and a testament to the caliber of athlete he is.
Nelson also has a personal best time of 11.05 seconds in the 100 meter dash, which is a very good time for a sophomore of his size. Again, not a total surprise. The Nebraska native is also a tremendous pole vaulter, which you don’t typically see at his size. Nelson had a personal best jump of 13’8” in the pole vault as a sophomore.
That is again not only a testament to his athleticism, but also to his flexibility and upper body strength. Just to cap it off, Nelson is also a premier discus thrower with a personal best of 175 feet. A combination of sprinting, high jumping, pole vaulting and throwing the discus isn’t a typical combination. This is a very unique athlete.
ALL AROUND ATHLETE
Nelson is also a standout basketball player on the hardwood. As a sophomore, he averaged 12.6 points, 8.7 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.6 steals and 3.4 blocks per game during the season. His highlight tape is littered with gravity defying dunks and athletic feats. There appears to be no limits to his athletic upside.
Nelson is also the president of the school’s Spanish club and an outstanding student. Both on and off the field, he is an extremely impressive young man. Of course, the football field is Nelson’s main arena.
He is already a well accomplished player from a recruiting ranking perspective. Nelson is ranked as the No. 109 overall player and No. 5 tight end in the 2024 recruiting class. From every vantage point,
Nelson is a high upside athlete who is just starting to understand how good he can be. He will need to gain a substantial amount of weight, and he has the frame to do just that.
For a Notre Dame program that has developed a reputation as “Tight End U”, Nelson could be the next great one. He is the type of high upside athlete that this staff has proven to value over the last couple of recruiting cycles.
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