Fantastic Fifteen: Carter Blackwell – “a matchup nightmare”

LEESBURG — There isn’t a defense in Georgia that can comfortably decide how to cover Lee County’s Carter Blackwell.

Line him up next to the tackle and he’s powerful enough to block defensive ends.

Split him out wide and he’s athletic enough to beat defensive backs.

Put him in the backfield and he can serve as a lead blocker or slip into the passing game.

It’s the versatility that has made Blackwell one of Georgia’s premier tight ends and earned him a scholarship to Clemson.

It’s also what makes him so difficult to defend.

“Carter is a lot like Tyrus Washington in that he can play as an attached tight end, as a fullback and split out wide,” Lee County coach Dean Fabrizio said. “He is truly a matchup nightmare.”

The Clemson commitment is the first player featured in the Albany Herald’s Fantastic Fifteen, a preseason series highlighting Southwest Georgia’s top high school football players entering the 2026 season.

For Blackwell, football has been part of his life almost as long as he can remember.

He began playing flag football at age 7 and begged to make the jump to tackle football. His mother finally agreed when he turned 9.

He hasn’t looked back.

“I loved it ever since then,” Blackwell said. “I wanted to be better and be the best. Football can get you so many different places.”

Those places now include Clemson, one of the nation’s premier college football programs.

But before Blackwell heads to Death Valley, he has one final mission in Leesburg.

“I think this team is very special,” he said. “Wait and see.”

Lee County returns one of the state’s deepest and most talented senior classes, and Blackwell believes the Trojans have everything needed to compete for a state championship.

His personal goals are simple.

Win games.

Keep improving.

Play into December.

While recruiting rankings and scholarship offers have followed him throughout high school, Blackwell said those aren’t what he’ll remember most about wearing a Lee County uniform.

Instead, he’ll remember the relationships.

“The brotherhood,” he said. “Everybody’s drive to help me … being out here with so many different friends and relationships.”

Football has shaped him in other ways as well.

The game has taught him resilience, helping him overcome adversity while preparing him for challenges beyond the field.

Those lessons will serve him well at Clemson, where he hopes to eventually reach the NFL.

Still, Blackwell knows football won’t last forever.

He plans to major in construction management and someday own a construction or land-clearing business.

His fascination with heavy equipment began long before recruiters began calling.

“I fell in love with big machines,” he said.

For now, however, Clemson can wait.

Blackwell’s focus remains on one last season in a Lee County uniform, one more opportunity to chase a state championship with teammates he considers brothers.

The scholarship is secured.

The future is waiting.

But before the next chapter begins, Blackwell believes the Trojans have unfinished business.

“I think this team is very special,” he said.

“Wait and see.”