Unlike most, if not all, of the other participants at the 2017 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championship, Carlos Becker didn’t dream of being in Eugene, Oregon, this week.
Truth be told, Becker probably wouldn’t even be there had he enjoyed the type of freshman season he had envisioned with the Florida State football team.
Despite not being one of the highest-rated recruits in the Seminoles’ 2016 signing class -- Rivals listed him as a three-star “athlete,” while ESPN rated him a four-star cornerback -- Becker had every intention of winning a starting job. Or at least becoming a major contributor.
And a case could be made that he accomplished the latter, especially late in the season when the Seminoles’ defensive secondary was ravaged by injuries. Becker saw substantial playing in November wins against Syracuse and Florida, and he recorded the game-sealing interception against Michigan in the Orange Bowl.
But for the Kissimmee, Fla., product, who had been an immediate star since he first took up the sport of football in eighth grade and sets very high standards for himself, sitting on the bench was a difficult adjustment.
“It was frustrating," Becker said. "The only reason I did track here was because I didn’t get on the field that much [in football]. It was either waste my freshman year, or do something else.”
Even the interception against Michigan didn’t satiate his desire.
“It was exciting for the moment,” Becker said. “I went home, and everybody was talking about it. But it’s just a pick now.”
When reminded that he did see the field in 10 games as a true freshman, as both a reserve safety and special-teams contributor, Becker quickly dismissed the notion that his first year of college football showed signs of his potential.
“I played some at the end of the year, but it wasn’t enough,” he said. “I guess there’s a plan for everything.”
Right now, the plan is to make the most of an opportunity most track athletes only dream of -- competing at NCAAs.
Considering that he split time with spring football practice and then offseason workouts, Becker is a surprising member of the FSU contingent at this week’s outdoor championship event.
As the No. 31 seed in the NCAA East Preliminary two weeks ago, Becker wasn’t supposed to advance to nationals in the long jump. But as other competitors struggled with nasty weather conditions, Becker rose to the challenge, posting a jump of 7.47 meters (24 feet, 6.25 inches) and snaring the 12th and final qualifying spot.
He is one of 24 competitors in the national event, which begins tonight in Eugene.
“He out-performed in the adverse conditions, which would make sense because of the kind of athlete he is,” FSU head track coach Bob Braman said. “If he jumps to his potential, he could probably make the top nine and probably score. He’s still learning, but he obviously has a lot of potential.”
Because of the position Becker plays in football and the event in which he competes in track, there are obvious comparisons between the freshman and former Florida State star Jalen Ramsey.
Ramsey, of course, earned All-America honors in football and also advanced to the NCAA meet in the long jump. What makes Becker’s track accomplishment perhaps even more impressive is that he did it as a freshman, while Ramsey did it as a sophomore. Becker also didn’t train extensively for track and field events in his youth the way Ramsey did; it was more of a diversion.
“I only did it in high school because I’m good at it,” said Becker, who won the Class 4A state long jump championship as a senior. “I was just trying to get points for my high school, so I did everything.”
Said Braman: “He’s not yet Jalen. But I think it’s in the same ballpark.”
Becker’s track teammates marvel at what he has accomplished in such a short time. Most of them have trained for their track & field events full-time for years, while only a small handful will ever get the chance to compete for a national title.
Becker is basically doing it in his spare time.
“I don’t think he really understood just how amazing it is what he’s been able to experience right now,” FSU senior high jumper Ed’Ricus Williams said. “I was telling him, ‘Have you ever played in a national championship game?’ And he said no. I said, ‘Well, you can almost cross that off your list, ’cause we’re heading to national championships.’”
Williams, who is a graduate transfer from Bethune-Cookman and also is competing this week at NCAAs, has taken a personal interest in Becker’s development. The pair hit it off immediately when Becker came out for the indoor track season, and the two have become very close friends despite their age difference -- Williams is finishing up his master’s degree in international affairs, while Becker has just completed his first year of college.
“He’s always got smart things to say,” Becker said, explaining that Williams has helped him on and off the track.
Because Williams played football in high school, he understands some of the frustrations Becker experienced this past fall. He also sees the tremendous physical gifts the 6-foot-2, 183-pound athlete possesses in both sports.
“Carlos has the potential to literally clear the pit,” Williams said with a laugh.
Williams said Becker’s lack of experience in track should not be mistaken for an absence of passion. Once the freshman realized he had a chance to score at the ACC and NCAA meets, Williams said, his competitive juices began to emerge.
Instead of merely making mandatory track workouts, he began looking to create extra time in his schedule to get in more training at the track.
“You don’t usually see that from a football player,” Williams said. “I love being around him because of that attitude. He wants more.”
For right now, that means a lofty goal of finishing in the top eight at the NCAA meet, which would mean points for FSU in the team standings and also All-America honors for himself.
Every day that he walks outside of Doak Campbell Stadium, Becker sees the red bricks engraved with the names of Seminole All-Americans in various sports. He wants one of his own, whether it be in track or football or both.
“I just want to get a brick,” the soft-spoken Becker said. “Leave my mark on this campus. That’s all I want to do.”
Williams wouldn’t bet against him: “He’s found a way to deliver on big stages. He had the game-sealing interception in the bowl game. So pressure is not something that gets to him.”
Whatever happens in Oregon, Becker soon will turn his full-time attention again to the sport he truly loves.
After playing primarily at safety as a freshman, Becker hopes to earn a starting job at cornerback this fall. He knows he has areas where he needs to show improvement, particularly when it comes to playing press-man coverage, something he never was allowed to do in high school. But he also believes he can become an impact player in what should be a crowded Seminole secondary.
“I’m trying to win a job,” said Becker, who tries to pattern his game after Seattle Seahawks star Richard Sherman. “Everybody’s going in there and going to bust their ass to get a job. And I’m going to be one of those guys.”
“He’s a really talented, really gifted young athlete,” Williams said. “And he’s got a chance to do something that not many have. The only other person I can think of right now that’s currently doing what he’s doing is someone like Marquise Goodwin (of the San Francisco 49ers) -- playing NFL football and doing track. And I told him he could be the same way.”
UPDATE: Becker earns his All-America brick by placing 7th at NCAA Outdoors
This is FSU's release on Becker's All-America performance Wednesday night
EUGENE, Ore. – For the second time in as many meets, Carlos Becker delivered a very simple message with his performance: Don’t ever count him out!
Defying the odds as the No. 23 seed in Wednesday’s field of 24 at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, Florida State’s freshman long jumper busted out a lifetime-best mark on his opening attempt and rode it all the way to a seventh-place finish.
“It really is remarkable,” FSU Director of Field Events Dennis Nobles said. “Like I told a few people, ‘If you had told me two days ago Carlos was going to finish seventh I’d have taken it and run like I stole something.’”
Becker’s opening leap of 7.63 meters (25-0.5) carried him into the finals, where a pair of narrow fouls on his last two attempts were all that separated him from an even higher finish on the podium.
“After I’d seen everyone jump 24 [feet] I felt pretty good about it,” Becker said. “The last two jumps were pretty big, but I fouled them. All my big jumps were fouls.
“I tried to win it, but things happen. I have three more years to do this, so I’m straight.”
Becker became the first Seminole freshman to earn first-team All-American honors outdoors in the long jump since Ngoni Makusha, who won the 2008 title in his first season. Makusha was actually at Nobles’ side as his volunteer assistant as Becker was making the most of his NCAA Championships debut.
“Those last two jumps, they were good jumps; they were really big jumps,” Nobles said. “We probably wouldn’t have won it, but we would have been third or fourth if it had been legal. But that’s a part of it. There are fouls and there are good people that didn’t jump what they wanted to jump out there. He just did a great job of focusing and competing.”
That’s been Becker’s calling card in the NCAA postseason. He arrived at the NCAA East Preliminaries two weeks ago in Lexington, Ky. seeded 31st in the field of 48 and grabbed the 12th and final qualifying spot. Then he upstaged a host of proven performers with a memorable effort when it mattered most.
“He was in the zone all day,” FSU head coach Bob Braman said. “He first jump was his best but his last two jumps were top-four territory, but small fouls. It was a super job for a freshman who makes his living on the gridiron.”
Until Wednesday, Becker’s athletic claim to fame as a Seminole was his Orange Bowl-sealing interception against Michigan. Now he’s destined to join the likes of Makusha and others with an All-American brick on FSU’s Walk of Fame outside the Moore Athletic Center.
“He’s still so very, very raw,” Nobles said of Becker. “It’s almost like having a lump of shapeless clay that you get to mold. If we had time with him, he could be something special, but he’s got some other things to do as well and I think he’s pretty good at that, from what I hear.”
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