The chance of playing is better': Highlands basketball standout transfers to Georgia private school
David Thompson
Asheville Citizen Times
HIGHLANDS – Reid Carrier, one of the top returning scorers in WNC high school basketball, has transferred to a private school in Georgia.
Carrier, who averaged 22.9 points and 4.5 rebounds a game as a sophomore in 2019, has left Highlands High School for Rabun Gap-Nacoochee and reclassified to the Class of 2023, according to his father, Mike Carrier.
Highlands plays in the Little Smoky Mountain Conference.
"For us, it wasn't a state issue, but a public school vs prep school situation," said Mike Carrier, whose family lives 30 minutes from the Rabun Gap campus. "I think the chance of playing is better in private schools right now and I think coaches understand that families have to do what we have to do. Parents are just trying to make the best decisions with the information we have."
Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the N.C. High School Athletic Association released its new athletic calendar earlier this month, which moved the start of the high school basketball season to Jan. 4 and limits teams to 14 regular season games.
Rabun Gap will begin its season in November with a full schedule of games. Carrier said his son is already attending in-person classes and the Rabun Gap basketball team has started its pre-season workouts.
Reid, who holds the single-game scoring record at Highlands with 42 points, joins Nate Brafford on the Eagles' basketball roster. Brafford, who transferred from Tuscola to Rabun Gap in April, led the state with 33.9 points a game during his junior season and reclassified to the Class of 2022.
Mike Carrier said his daughter, Jordan, a two-sport senior at Highlands, will remain in public school. Carrier added that his son had already considered moving to a private school before the coronavirus pandemic.
"At the end of the day we love Highlands," Mike Carrier said. "But we let our kids drive the bus and this is what he (Reid) wanted to do. It's a tough decision for all of us, but at the end of the day, with all the uncertainty, we feel like this is a place where he'll get to play the sport he loves."
Coaches concerned about transfers
Smoky Mountain Conference football coaches have also expressed concern about losing kids to private schools or out-of-state schools.
Two players from Hayesville's varsity football team have already transferred to out of state schools, according to coach Chad McClure. Andrews coach James Phillips said Aug. 3 he's lost a player who transferred to an out of state program.
"It's a balancing act between being honest with your players and not deceiving them, but also trying to keep them hopeful," James Phillips told the Citizen Times earlier this month. "I can't hold it against players who want to have a chance to play somewhere else. We're next to two states going full steam ahead, and that's the scary part. You can already see the holes appearing in the dam."
Jacob Halfacre, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound rising senior defensive end at Reynolds, announced July 21 on social media that he had transferred to Christ School and reclassified to the class of 2022.
N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association, the governing body for most private school high school sports in North Carolina, instructed member schools via email Aug. 25 from director Homar Ramirez that football teams can begin practice Sept. 8 and start play Sept. 21.
The public school season is set to begin Feb. 26.
Asheville Christian Academy athletic director Joe Johnson said Aug. 26 that the football program will delay the start of the season until spring "primary because we can't hit our budget without fans in the stands."
Christ School and Asheville School have not yet committed to playing football in the fall.
David Thompson is an award-winning reporter for the Citizen Times. He can be reached at dthompson@citizentimes.com, at 828-231-1747, or on Twitter at @acthshuddle.
David Thompson
Asheville Citizen Times
HIGHLANDS – Reid Carrier, one of the top returning scorers in WNC high school basketball, has transferred to a private school in Georgia.
Carrier, who averaged 22.9 points and 4.5 rebounds a game as a sophomore in 2019, has left Highlands High School for Rabun Gap-Nacoochee and reclassified to the Class of 2023, according to his father, Mike Carrier.
Highlands plays in the Little Smoky Mountain Conference.
"For us, it wasn't a state issue, but a public school vs prep school situation," said Mike Carrier, whose family lives 30 minutes from the Rabun Gap campus. "I think the chance of playing is better in private schools right now and I think coaches understand that families have to do what we have to do. Parents are just trying to make the best decisions with the information we have."
Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the N.C. High School Athletic Association released its new athletic calendar earlier this month, which moved the start of the high school basketball season to Jan. 4 and limits teams to 14 regular season games.
Rabun Gap will begin its season in November with a full schedule of games. Carrier said his son is already attending in-person classes and the Rabun Gap basketball team has started its pre-season workouts.
Reid, who holds the single-game scoring record at Highlands with 42 points, joins Nate Brafford on the Eagles' basketball roster. Brafford, who transferred from Tuscola to Rabun Gap in April, led the state with 33.9 points a game during his junior season and reclassified to the Class of 2022.
Mike Carrier said his daughter, Jordan, a two-sport senior at Highlands, will remain in public school. Carrier added that his son had already considered moving to a private school before the coronavirus pandemic.
"At the end of the day we love Highlands," Mike Carrier said. "But we let our kids drive the bus and this is what he (Reid) wanted to do. It's a tough decision for all of us, but at the end of the day, with all the uncertainty, we feel like this is a place where he'll get to play the sport he loves."
Coaches concerned about transfers
Smoky Mountain Conference football coaches have also expressed concern about losing kids to private schools or out-of-state schools.
Two players from Hayesville's varsity football team have already transferred to out of state schools, according to coach Chad McClure. Andrews coach James Phillips said Aug. 3 he's lost a player who transferred to an out of state program.
"It's a balancing act between being honest with your players and not deceiving them, but also trying to keep them hopeful," James Phillips told the Citizen Times earlier this month. "I can't hold it against players who want to have a chance to play somewhere else. We're next to two states going full steam ahead, and that's the scary part. You can already see the holes appearing in the dam."
Jacob Halfacre, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound rising senior defensive end at Reynolds, announced July 21 on social media that he had transferred to Christ School and reclassified to the class of 2022.
N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association, the governing body for most private school high school sports in North Carolina, instructed member schools via email Aug. 25 from director Homar Ramirez that football teams can begin practice Sept. 8 and start play Sept. 21.
The public school season is set to begin Feb. 26.
Asheville Christian Academy athletic director Joe Johnson said Aug. 26 that the football program will delay the start of the season until spring "primary because we can't hit our budget without fans in the stands."
Christ School and Asheville School have not yet committed to playing football in the fall.
David Thompson is an award-winning reporter for the Citizen Times. He can be reached at dthompson@citizentimes.com, at 828-231-1747, or on Twitter at @acthshuddle.
