Mark Carter did a quick dance move to the 50 Cent song playing in the background at a Desert Edge football practice. A few seconds later he called a play in a seven-on-seven drill and quarterback Adryan Lara threw long touchdown pass.
The moment is just one of many Mark and co-coach and twin Marcus Carter have shared since starting their careers together years ago.
Months of COVID-fueled confusion slashed preparation time before the pair's first season as Scorpion coaches. The 2020 season is one of high expectations and an immensely-talented roster, but the two brothers could not be in much better spirits.
“It’s super fun and challenging. But that’s the reason why we came here. It’s being more in the spotlight, and not a lot of coaches of color get an opportunity like this. So we both prayed on it for a long time, and made the decision, and it's been the best one," Marcus said.
The brothers compete at everything. They always have. That includes play-calling, drills, and a competition between players on offense and defense in every rep. It challenges the players to improve.
“It's been our whole lives. I’d imagine in our mother’s womb we were fighting over food," said Mark Carter.
“The players feed off it, and they see us going at it, so they get pumped up repping their side.”
That mindset carries into daily practices, as the Scorpions chase success in a new 5A schedule and beyond. Mark and Marcus were assistants on Cactus High title squads, and have since coached other talented rosters. But they entered a program that fancies itself a state power immediately.
Unlike the pair atop the coaching tree, many of the important players that helped the Scorpions reach the 4A championship are program veterans. They fell just short to Mesquite, 28-23, and want revenge.
Desert Edge's eleven top tacklers were juniors or sophomores last season, including seniors Myles Hobbs (103 tackles) and Steven Ortiz Jr. (83 tackles, 1 INT). The Scorpions also return several key offensive linemen, junior quarterback Adryan Lara, junior running back Jeryll Mcintosh and two of the top three pass catchers in senior Andrew Patterson and junior Richard Kulik, among other contributors.
Much of the core, said Kulik, has been playing together since middle school. Since the coachs' first day on staff, though, the returning players have been impressed with the seamless transition. It feels like an instant match.
“They just said it’s not going to be the same thing as last year," Kulik remembers the Carter brothers telling the Scorpions early in preparation.
"They have that same taste in their mouth that we do from losing the 4A state championship and everyone wants to change that."
Also new to the team are a few transfers, adding even more talent into the mix. Linerbacker-DE-hybrid Zachary Blackwood is one of the additions. He said, just as the coaches were accepted right away, so were he and the other new kids.
“Coaches and players both make me feel like brothers, like we’ve been here part of the program all four years," Blackwood said.
As Patterson jogged back to the huddle after catching the long practice touchdown, Marcus constructively scolded the defensive unit that let the receiver slip past while his brother danced a bit more. He knew a few plays later his unit, and thus he, might be dancing as Mark tried to talk to his kids.
With a shortened offseason and just eight games before a potential playoff berth, the Carter brothers have to get the Scorpions ready in a hurry.
But because of their confidence in themselves, their assistants and a crop of kids ready to succeed, the Scorpions are coming.
"Coach (Jose) Lucero did a great job building young men, and we’re just picking up where he left off and adding our little twist on it," Marcus Carter said.
