Sports: Halfway to his goal

Halfway to his goal

Quincy Carter stayed in school with hopes of beating Florida and Tennessee, and the Georgia QB beat the Vols earlier this season.

By JOANNE KORTH

JACKSONVILLE -- When quarterback Quincy Carter was trying to decide between the NFL and his junior season at Georgia, two things kept coming to mind: Tennessee and Florida.

He wanted to beat both.

He is halfway there.

Carter, who earlier this season helped the Bulldogs end a nine-game losing streak to Tennessee, will lead No. 13 Georgia against No. 8 Florida today in a critical Southeastern Conference game.

"There's a lot of unfinished business I want to accomplish," Carter said before the season started. "I want to beat Tennessee and Florida."

One down, one to go.

A junior, Carter struggled in two previous games against the Gators. In 1998 he threw two interceptions as the Bulldogs fell behind early in a 38-7 loss. Last season, he was 6-for-23 with an interception in a 30-14 loss.

"I know the quarterback gets blamed for the losses," Carter said. "That's just the way it goes. That's the pressure of being the quarterback. But I don't put it on myself. I love the game too much to put the whole game on myself."

Carter, who played two seasons of professional baseball before enrolling at Georgia, lit up the SEC his first two seasons. Starting every game, he threw for 5,197 yards and 29 touchdowns.

But this season, he has struggled. He is 71 for 144 for 1,010 yards, five touchdowns and seven interceptions, five of which came in a 21-10 loss to South Carolina in the SEC opener.

Carter bruised the rotator cuff in his left, non-throwing shoulder while being tackled in the fourth quarter of a 29-19 victory Oct. 14 against Vanderbilt. He could not lift his arm above his head last week, breaking his streak of 30 starts.

In his place, sophomore Cory Phillips led the Bulldogs to a 34-30 victory at Kentucky, completing 20 of 28 for 400 yards and a school record-tying four touchdowns.

Controversy brewed.

But coach Jim Donnan quickly quashed it. As soon as Carter proved he was healthy enough to play, Donnan named him the starter.

"I really don't want to get into any conjecture about the quarterback situation," Donnan said. "That would be true of any quarterback who has played as good as Quincy has for us. He won the position. But it's always good to see a guy step up like Cory did."

Phillips was neither surprised, nor upset.

"If Quincy had been out there (against Kentucky), he probably would have thrown for 500 yards," Phillips said. "He's done a great job here. He's the starting quarterback."

Though it was not announced until mid-week that Carter would start, the Gators prepared for him all the way. His athleticism and ability to escape danger make him a challenge for any defense.

"Honestly, I would love to play against Quincy Carter," UF cornerback Keiwan Ratliff said. "He's a great quarterback and we're prepared to play against Quincy Carter whether he's playing or not, so hopefully he will play."

He will. After all, today's game is half the reason he's still in college.