Feb. 7, 2002
A pair of strawberry knees and bruised hips gives Matt Carroll the not-so dubious distinction as team leader in floor-burns, an honor representative of his relentless style of play.
But a contagious smile serves as an equally telling symbol.
And Carroll’s character proves it.
Now in his third season with the Irish, Carroll has quickly become a nationally recognized perimeter player. But within the Notre Dame family, Carroll has developed just as rapidly into its model son.
“Everybody knows ‘Mattie’ (Carroll’s nickname). He is the big-man in Dillon Hall,” says sophomore point guard Chris Markwood.
“If you come across him, you’re going to like him. He is real sociable and comes off as a really nice guy. He is a great player and a great person. He means the world to us.”
From the Notre Dame family to the Carroll family, it is no surprise that Carroll’s influence came from home.
“My dad always told me growing up, ‘I don’t care about how well you play in a game or how well you do in school, I want people to know you are a good person.’ That is something that stuck with me throughout,” says Carroll.
Yet, don’t confuse the Carroll’s for the Osmond’s. While there may be a white-picket fence surrounding the family yard, there most certainly was a basketball hoop in the driveway.
Grandfather Don Graham is the winningest coach in the history of Pennsylvania high school basketball, while father John played under Joe Paterno as a quarterback at Penn State. Brother Patrick is a freshman on perennial Atlantic-10 contender St. Joseph’s (Pa). Uncles Don Graham and Mike Graham played collegiate basketball at St. Francis (Pa.) and American University, respectively, while his uncle Tom Carroll pitched for the Cincinnati Reds in 1975, winning a World Championship.
Yet this family tree provides more than a rich athletic heritage. It sets the standard for experiencing success on the field, and earning greater accomplishments off it.
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| Matt Carroll |
Close friend and former backcourt mate Martin Ingelsby understands the influence.
“Matt’s father and grandfather have played a very important role in the type of basketball player Matt has become,” says Ingelsby.
“They have instilled in him the drive and passion to be the best. Although many people may see Matt as a great basketball player, more importantly, he is a great person. He embodies what this University is all about. A lot of his character comes from his relationship with his family.”
But according to father John, it is his son who has made the real difference.
“I think there’s got to be something in the genes from an athletic standpoint,” says John Carroll.
“You can have all the skill in the world but you need that mental toughness and discipline to work and make yourself better, which Matt has. He’s an extremely hard worker, very disciplined, and gets the most out of his talent. That is him and has nothing to do with me.”
“My grandfather and my father have been there for me through the thick and the thin and supported me in all the decisions I’ve made,” says Carroll.
“Just with their support, they got me started playing basketball when I was young. That’s where I took off.”
After 14 years in the Steel City, and following his grandfather from gym to gym at Pittsburgh’s North Catholic High School, Carroll ventured across state to Philadelphia and embarked upon a stellar high school career.
At Hatboro-Horsham High School, Carroll became the first player in state history to win the Associated Press Player-of-the-Year Award twice. Only current NBA star Kobe Bryant has tallied more career points in southeastern Pennsylvania than Carroll.
Second-year guard Torrian Jones played against Carroll while a sophomore at Pennsbury High School.
“His team was one of the best teams in the state and Matt Carroll’s name was bigger than any other name I could remember,” says Jones.
“He was a great player early on, same way he is now. He was always there to make the big play and be a class-act guy. He talked to me after the game and told me to keep my head up because I had a big future ahead of me. He was always supportive of everybody.”
Following graduation in the summer of 1999, Carroll’s career went full-circle. From all the accolades came the opportunity to play formally under his grandfather at the Magic Johnson Roundball Classic, where Graham was selected to coach and Carroll selected to play. Carroll responded by scoring 19 points against the nation’s top high-school talent.
Four years later, the BIG EAST’s proverbial class-act has become a nightmare for opponents.
“Once the ball goes up, I’m ready to go. You feel a ball of fire coming on that gets you ready. I want to throw myself in the game with two feet and just go at it, to go out there and let everything out.”
As a freshman, Carroll averaged 9.8 points per contest, third best on the team. He came off the bench in the first six games before earning his first career start against Vanderbilt.
After averaging 17 minutes the first six contests of the year, Carroll would average over 30 minutes per game for the duration of the season. He reached double figures in 18 contests, including nine times against BIG EAST opponents.
In 2000-2001, Carroll started all 30 games while averaging 12.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. His 65 three-point field goals led the squad and marked the fourth-highest single-season mark in team history. He scored a game-high 21 points against Xavier in the NCAA Tournament, where he shot a personal best 81.8 percent from the field.
“The biggest key is to stay motivated. That’s what separates the good players from the great players. After a win, it is human nature to come in here (for practice) and be lackadaisical and satisfied with yourself. One thing I try to do is to not ever be satisfied, and it will help me keep getting better.”
Such motivation serves Carroll well today. In 2002, Carroll has started all 21 games for the Irish and extended his streak of consecutive starts to 59. He earned all-tournament honors in the Hawaii Pacific Thanksgiving Classic, averaging 16.7 points and connecting on 12 three-pointers. Against Tennessee-Chattanooga in the tournament semifinal, Carroll became the first player in Irish history to record more than five three-point field goals in a game without missing, going six-for-six from beyond the arc.
“Matt is a hard-worker and does the small things,” says senior forward Ryan Humphrey.
“Everybody knows he could score, but he also sticks to the other team’s best perimeter player. Matt is one of the most versatile players I’ve ever played with. I love playing with Matt because I feed off him.”
“Matt is vocal when he wants to be, but he leads by example,” adds freshman forward Jordan Cornette.
“When he is going out there diving for balls, knocking down shots, getting steals, defending his man, then you are going to do the same thing when you are out there. At halftime, if we’re not playing well, he’ll open his mouth and talk. What he does on the court is contagious for the rest of the team.”
Fortunately for the rest of the Irish a stomach flu that inflicted Carroll just two nights before hosting Pittsburgh on Jan.30, and forced him into an overnight stay at the Notre Dame infirmary was not contagious. The flu-bug stayed away from the Notre Dame lockerroom. The same cannot be said for Carroll. Unable to eat and with intravenous tubes connected to his body throughout game day, Carroll stepped out of the health center and onto the floor of the Joyce Center.
And eventually into the final box score with 15 points and five rebounds in 31 minutes of action in an 89-76 win over 21st-ranked Pittsburgh.
“He is one of those players who does anything for the team,” says senior captain and forward Harold Swanagan.
“When you need him to hit big shots, he’s there to do it. When you need him down on the floor, he’s there to do it. He’s there to pick up the intensity when nobody else is willing to. That’s what makes a great player.”
“I try to do a lot of things and it’s hard to really tell sometimes,” says Carroll.
“For instance, you look at Swanagan and it would seem as if he is not doing much. But he does all the little things the crowd doesn’t see. He gets loose balls, he hits balls back to us and enables us to get scoring opportunities. I try to do the same. I think I improved myself a lot on the defensive end trying to be a defensive player. When you play, you want to do a lot more than just be known as a one-dimensional player.”
A quick glance at the stat sheet will serve as confirmation. From 1999-2000 to 2000-01, Carroll rebounded 51 additional balls and notched 36 more assists, with playing time only increasing by about 30 seconds each game.
But, to Carroll, stats mean nothing. Even for a competitor who played in Europe against international competition as a two-time member of the USA Junior National Team, was a member of the National Invitation Tournament all-star team, was the leading scorer in an NCAA Tournament victory over Xavier and starred on a squad that battled all the way to Madison Square Garden for the NIT championship game, Carroll is as modest as ever..
“I just try to give everything I have everyday, knowing that if I went out and didn’t have a great practice, but played as hard as I could, I’d be happy. But if I ever go out there and not give it everything I could and say to myself ‘I could have dove for that loose ball or I could have got that rebound,’ then I’m not going to be happy. Knowing that I work to get better, that’s all I could do.”
“He is one of those guys who is so professional out there,” says Cornette.
“He leads by what he says off the court and how he plays on the court. Coming in he is one of the guys I looked up to. We have three captains on the team, but really I think he is the fourth captain on the team.”
Carroll will beat you with he leadership, with his shot, and with his hustle.
“He is extremely driven,” says Matt’s mom Maureen Carroll.
“Even in the face of adversity, he is able to rise to the occasion. He is extremely competitive, but at the same time sincere.”
And according to Mom he’s got the rest beat on character, too.
The Notre Dame family agrees.