Goose Creek Memorial made the playoffs for the first time since 2013 last year. Shannon Carter enters year three of leading The Patriots as they aim to "Plant The Flag" in 2021 by making it back to the postseason and getting the first playoff win in program history.

The Patriots are off to a 1-2 start to the season and face Galveston Ball on Friday. We caught up with Carter prior to the beginning of the 2021 season. This article appears in the VYPE 2021 GCCISD Fall Edition.

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VYPE: As you enter year three, do you feel your program and culture taking hold?

CARTER: Year one it was "Speak Victory", last year we wanted to "Wake'Em Up" and this year it is "Plant the Flag". To me we're saying we are here, operating on all cylinders and a program that needs to be reckoned with.

VYPE: How did you all come up with "Plant the Flag"?

CARTER: My wife, Gretchen, did. We were sitting there talking one night and I was like 'What should our motto or war cry be this year?'. She said 'Plant the Flag'. My wife is a great coach's wife and she gets credit for the slogan this year.

VYPE: What does "Plant the Flag" mean to you?

CARTER: For me, it's nothing at all close to war. I am a history major, and I know symbolically what that means from teaching World War II. The flag is very symbolic that we're staking our claim. So, that's what it means to me. We don't want last year to be an anomaly; we want that to be every year and we want to build off last year.

VYPE: What's the next step for your program?

CARTER: I think all of us we're scared of success. When you're fighting to hit a target and you haven't hit it, you stay motivated. But then what do you do when you hit that target? We want to be a playoff team again and we want to win the first playoff game in school history. That's our mark, hopefully we hit it.

Players to Watch

Mason Duke (QB)
Josiah Rice (OLB)
David Pierre (OLB)
Jayson Gipson (TE)
Riley Banks (OT)
Ethan Dyson (OT)
LaJewel McGilbray (ILB)

LaJewel McGilbray