Some people have to search a majority of their life to find their passion and love for what they do, but for South Alabama quarterback Carter Bradley, that passion and love for the game of football arrived before he could even walk.

"I actually got a video from my mom the other day of me putting on a Minnesota Vikings helmet when I wasn't even able to walk yet," Bradley lamented. "I was crawling with a helmet on and a football in my hand before I could even walk. I've always had a football in my hand."

The son of one of the best defensive minds in the National Football League, Carter has been around the game his entire life and has had an innate love for it ever since. Bradley's father, Gus, who is currently the defensive coordinator for the Indianapolis Colts, has spent the past 32 years in coaching, including the last 16 in the NFL. He is probably best known for his time as the defensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks (2009-12) where he came to prominence as he was the original play caller for the team's Legion of Boom secondary.

So, having a front-row seat growing up to that side of the ball and a lineage to one of the best defensive play callers, one might have thought Carter would one day star in the defensive backfield or at least on that side of the ball. However, the 6-foot-3 senior decided that offense is where he wanted to forge his path.

For Bradley, his time as a player started back when he was in kindergarten as a member of the New Tampa Patriots, while his dad was a member of Tony Dungy's staff at Tampa Bay. Like most players at that level, he played both sides of the ball seeing time as a backup quarterback and safety.

"I really didn't know what was going on at that point. I was just out there having fun with my buddies playing football," Bradley said. "At some point, it kind of clicked with me that I wasn't starting and I got a little frustrated and started to work a little bit. One thing led to another and I started playing more and starting games. I began to get really competitive.

Bradley played other sports as well growing up, but football was his love.

"Football has definitely been the number one thing in my life," he said. "I played a little bit of baseball, a little bit of basketball and did some track in high school, but I never really fell in love with any of those sports. I've always played football just because I loved it"

As he continued to grow physically, he also grew mentally in the game.

"I was just going out there and having fun with some of the guys," Bradley stated. "I studied hard and watched film. I would understand the game and the concepts and when it was time to go play, I would just go play. Once I got into college, I started to really understand what preparation was like, and I'm still growing and learning the game."

"Carter's a great young man," South Alabama offensive coordinator Major Applewhite said. "He loves the game, he truly does. He's been around NFL players and coaches his whole life, and he understands the importance of the quarterback position since his dad was the head coach to the Jacksonville Jaguars, who drafted a franchise quarterback."

While being the child of a professional athlete or coach can present challenges, Bradley's love for the game has helped him navigate the twists and turns.

"It's definitely had its ups and downs," Bradley said. "You want to be a family when family time comes, but his job and what he had to do in order to win games was important and I understood that growing up. Being around the game and my love for it made it a plus though. I was able to be around some pretty cool superstars growing up and I was able to see them grow into their own role."

A few of those superstars would ultimately lead Bradley to his position.

"When we were in Seattle, I was able to watch Russell Wilson throw the ball and it caught my eye" Bradley said. "I was able to also watch Peyton Manning, Brett Farve and Arron Rodgers growing up. Just seeing how well those guys could spin the ball made me want to become good at it. My dad never tried to tell me that he wanted me to do this or do that. He told me he just wanted me to be happy and if I did something, he wanted me to make sure that I did it to the best of my ability. That's all he asked of me."

Coming out of high school as a three-star rated recruit by multiple services and considered a consensus top 20 pro-style quarterback recruit who participated in the Elite 11 finals, Bradley began his collegiate career at Toledo. During the 2021 season, he competed in eight contests, which included an 18-of-28 passing performance for 221 yards and a score as the Rockets nearly pulled off an upset at seventh-ranked Notre Dame in South Bend. However, a poor performance the following week against Colorado State provided a lesson that he still carries.

"It was definitely a confidence booster for our team because it showed us the potential that we had, but the next week it didn't go so well as we got beat by Colorado State," Bradley said. "That's really what I remember most about the experience; not the things that happened at Notre Dame, but what happened the next week because with this game; you can't get caught in the moment. You have to keep going and keep pushing. You have to create a sense of urgency in those around you to continue to get better and learn from your mistakes. It's okay to mess up, but you have to keep going and the next one is the most important one."

Following the conclusion of the season, Bradley felt he needed a change of scenery so he entered the transfer portal. As he has done throughout his life whenever he needed advice about the game or life in general, all he had to do was look to his father. 

"There have been so many talks between the two of us about life and when you go through something that you might be struggling in, or if you don't see it like you should or you don't see the success coming," Bradley said. "There have been so many quotes and things I can pull from my dad in the library of things he's said to me. We talk more about how to handle things when they get tough, than about coverages. His talks and advice have helped me see how I can become a better leader, build relationships with people and keeping those relationships and learning how people act. That has been the biggest influence that he's had on me. Not so much about football; the plays are the plays and the calls are the calls. 

He's also relied on his faith.

"Keeping faith in my life though and trusting Him in that process is the strongest thing," Bradley said. "God's always got something planned. I've always told myself to 'Pray like it depends upon him and work like it depends on you.' That's always been my go to thing. That faith still brings me comfort today. I just try to make sure I have all the right things clicked on my side of preparing for the game in practice and handling it with Him."

Second-year South Alabama head coach Kane Wommack not only knew what Bradley offered physically, but also what Bradley embodied when he saw the quarterback's name enter the portal.

"Carter has a very special arm talent; he can deliver the ball anywhere he needs to on the field," Wommack said of Bradley's physical talent. "He has a very quick delivery and can deliver the ball from different angles, so if he's getting pressure or a different type of rush, he's able to manipulate his throwing angle to get the ball where it needs to be. He's also just a guy that understands the game of football. Having his dad in this profession has helped Carter understand what this is supposed to look like day in and day out at an elite level in terms of quarterback play. Those things jumped off the page when we saw him during the recruiting process. 

"As we got to know him and who his father is, you start to understand how important relationships are to those two men and how important the game of football is to them. I've known Gus Bradley for a number of years and he's one of the most impressive people in the game of football. He's a great football coach, but he's also a great person and a great leader. You can see all those things in his son and the way he goes about his business." 

After the process and the relationships he had established with both Wommack and Applewhite, Bradley decided to make South Alabama his new home arriving in Mobile in January.

"Coach Applewhite gave me a second chance," Bradley said. "When I left Toledo, I wasn't sure whether or not I would ever pick up a football again. I was in a crazy mental state and didn't know where I was going to be able to transfer to. I didn't know if I was going to be able to play this game or if I even wanted to at that time. I feel God put me here at South Alabama in Coach Applewhite's offense for a specific reason. He's maturing me not only as a quarterback and a football player, but he's teaching me so many things.  I don't feel I could be in a better place than I'm at here at South Alabama. He saved my life and my football career, so I can't thank him enough."

Following a quarterback competition throughout the spring and fall camp, Bradley was named QB1 for the Jaguars and through the first three games of the 2022 campaign he has completed 69 of his 103 pass attempts, thrown for 851 yards and thrown for seven touchdowns. 

One his best performances of the season came in South Alabama's 38-24 road victory at Central Michigan. In the 14-point victory over the Chippewas, Bradley connected on 26 of his 41 pass attempts and threw three touchdowns. Of South's 502 yards of total offense, 354 came through the air, which tied for fourth (Jake Bentley, vs. Georgia Southern, 10/14/21) in a single game. For his play, Bradley was one of eight quarterbacks from around the nation that week to be named a Manning Award "Stars of the Week".

Following that performance at CMU, Bradley nearly led South Alabama to an upset of UCLA as the Jags fell on a last second field goal, 32-31 in the historic Rose Bowl this past Saturday. He finished the day 26-for-36 and threw for 237 yards with a touchdown and an interception against the Bruins in the one-point loss.

As the Jags head into their match up Saturday evening at 6 p.m. against Louisiana Tech at Hancock Whitney Stadium, Bradley will draw from his previous experiences.

"The flashbacks from previous games tell you that you have to keep going because the game isn't over until there's quadruple zeros on the clock and the final whistle blows," Bradley said. "I just want to keep pushing the guys and make sure they aren't letting up. That's definitely one of the things I wanted to bring to South Alabama when I arrived here. I wanted to be the example and show them that we need to always keep going and never take a break. I feel we are headed in the right direction."

With South Alabama sitting at 2-1 this fall, the possibilities are numerous, and the 2022 season is just another chapter in the story of Carter Bradley's life-long passion and love for football.

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