UConn football to get defensive reinforcement after NCAA reverses eligibility decision

STORRS – The UConn football team should be getting some reinforcement on its defensive line ahead of its first power-conference game of the season when Maryland visits Saturday. Esean Carter, a nose tackle who transferred in after five years at Toledo, fell victim to the chaos in college sports this summer after he was deemed ineligible to play by the NCAA, which didn't initially recognize a foot injury that cut his 2022 season short. In a time of rule changes and lawsuits muddying the waters, Carter followed coach Jason Candle to UConn with an understanding that he'd be awarded an extra year because of the injury. He moved onto campus and participated in the spring, only to find out that he was no longer considered eligible for the 2026 season. Ultimately, proper documentation of the injury was provided to the NCAA and the decision was reversed on Friday, a day before the Huskies' season-opener against Lafayette. '(It was) a big lift for that young man, obviously, and a big moment for our team to hear that news,' Candle said Monday. 'I mean, the NCAA takes so many shots over what's right and what's wrong, but this is one that I ultimately believe they got right. The kid didn't do anything wrong and he got himself in a situation where he got the desired news that he wanted. He just hadn't been in practice for the last couple weeks, so just to throw that guy in there on Saturday and make him play 12, 15, 20, 30 plays – that's not fair. He's gonna have a good week this week and hopefully we have him at full strength by Saturday.' Carter, a 6-foot-3, 292-pound defensive tackle from Detroit, began his college career in 2021, when he appeared in just two games at Toledo and took a regular redshirt year to preserve his freshman eligibility. He also appeared in two games the following year before shutting his season down because of the foot, which should have – and eventually did preserve an extra year of eligibility through a medical hardship waiver. It should be noted that, under the NCAA's new age-based eligibility model, which will be applied in full capacity to student-athletes beginning their college career in the fall of 2027 and beyond, hardship waivers and redshirt years will no longer be accepted. But that doesn't apply to Carter's case. Once the good news was delivered in the Huskies' locker room last week, there was a collective sigh of relief from the group knowing that their teammate was wronged and it was made right. 'We were very, very, very excited. We were very upset when we got the (initial news that he wasn't eligible), he plays a real big role in our defense and most importantly our team. He has a very big impact, so just to get that news that he's back, it's just a blessing,' said fifth-year defensive end Anas Luqman, a transfer from Ohio. Carter is coming off of his best season yet, totalling 36 tackles for the Rockets with 3.0 sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss. He suited up for Saturday's 56-7 win over Lafayette, but didn't play after missing the last few weeks of practice. 'Esean means everything, he's a big part of our group, big part of our defense,' linebacker and captain K'Von Sherman told The Courant after Saturday's game. 'From the seniority standpoint, he's a real leader to the young guys. A lot of guys in that locker room look up to him; I look up to him. I was with him at Toledo and I've just never seen Esean switch up, never switch up his process and I always valued that about him. He's always the same person.' 'When I first heard about the stuff, it was during the week and honestly I wasn't too crazy about it because I just put it in God's hands and I knew, like, Coach Candle's not gonna put us in a bad position,' Sherman said. 'And how it went down, you kind of gotta be like, 'Alright, somebody's getting screwed over in this, and I doubt somebody's gonna let that happen.' So I always believed that it wasn't gonna be the end of the road for him. And if it was, he told me I can't be sad because he's not playing, I gotta still go out there and play. So I appreciate him for telling me that and I appreciate all the hard work he's put in to this point. That's my dog.'