Kenwood senior wide receiver Lawrence Carr has a reserved personality that rarely calls attention to him.
Carr saves the brash and bold for the football field, and everything quiet about him quickly disappears.
“I’m a little shy when I first meet people,” he said. “It gets better when we get to talking. My mentality just changes when I’m out there playing. I know that nobody can guard me.”
Carr, who returned a kickoff 81 yards for a touchdown during Kenwood’s 48-0 Public League Red Shield victory over Lincoln Park at Lane Stadium in Chicago on Saturday, has 11 TDs this season, mostly on pass plays.
Carr has 27 catches for 738 yards and nine TDs for the Broncos (5-2, 4-0), who have won five straight, and he’s averaging 27.3 yards per catch.
“We have a great one with him,” Kenwood junior quarterback Malachi Henigan said. “He just brings so much to our offense with his versatility, speed, hands and his leadership.
“He’s very hardworking and humble, and he always comes early or stays after practice so that we could throw the ball around and really get that chemistry down.”
Carr shares a different connection with Kenwood coach Chris Goffer, a former player and assistant at Mount Carmel. Carr began his career at Mount Carmel as a freshman receiver. He was dressed and on the sideline when the Caravan beat Downers Grove North 35-10 in the 2023 Class 7A state championship game.
Carr arrived at Kenwood at the beginning of his sophomore year.
“He was young when I got him,” Goffer said. “There were some teaching and learning curves there. He is always going to give you 100% effort. He’s great at catching the ball and has some of the strongest hands I’ve ever seen on a receiver.”
More Top Picks How To Choose A Tinted Lens Color For Reading
The 5-foot-11, 170-pound Carr combines solid size with speed, quickness and great separation skills. But understatement defines him.
Carr has scholarship offers from nearly 30 Division I teams, including Miami and Wisconsin, but he hasn’t turned his recruiting process into a production.
“I probably won’t decide until after the season is over,” he said. “It’s a privilege and honor to get the attention, but I don’t really talk about it. I just stay humble. When people congratulate me, I just say ‘thank you.’”
Carr has a way of revealing himself late. Kenwood senior running back Jamarius Andrus marvels at one particularly subtle part of Carr’s game.
“I just love watching his late hands,” Andrus said. “He’s never early. It’s as if you don’t even see him catching the ball because his hands are just late.
“Sometimes we have a hard time on a drive, and then you see Lawrence catching a deep ball. It’s very reassuring playing with him.”
Carr once played basketball and baseball as well, but football commands his full attention. The sport reaches back into his earliest memories. He recalls running around with a football as early as the age of 3. He said his father, Corey Gooch, was his earliest advocate.
“I didn’t really know anything about football,” he said. “At first, I didn’t really like it, but my dad kept pushing me and wanting me to play for real.
“I was probably 5 or something when I scored my first touchdown. I started working with my dad every day, and I’ve loved the game ever since.”
Some of Carr’s favorite childhood memories, including camping trips with his grandfather and building small cars, have nothing to do with football.
“We used to do these little races when I was a kid,” he said. “I still have those cars.
“Even though I’m quiet, I’ve always been competitive and ambitious, especially as I got deeper into football. I’ve always had this great excitement for the game.”
Patrick Z. McGavin is a freelance reporter.