When it comes to harness racing, Jacquavyian Carter doesn’t plan to fumble the ball
The former gridiron standout continues to make forward progress on the track.
by Chris Lomon
Injury derailed a promising football career, but it didn’t deter Jacquavyian Carter from keeping his athletic dreams in motion.
When a pair of serious knee injuries ended his time on the gridiron, the young man from small-town Mississippi could have focused on disappointment and bad fortune.
Instead, Carter chose a different path.
“I told myself that if I want to be able to walk when I’m older, I needed to leave football alone and do something else,” he said. “That is when I realized I could be a driver. I grew up around horses my whole life, but football was my first love. When I knew that wouldn’t work out, I turned to the horses.”
Harness racing and horses were already deeply rooted in Carter’s life.
Growing up in Clinton, the 10th most populous city in the Magnolia State, he developed a love of racing and racehorses through family.
“I’m actually a fifth-generation horseperson,” Carter said. “My great-grandaddy’s daddy had horses – he was a big-time horseman back in the 1930s and 1940s.
“I grew up in a family who just loved horses. Every Sunday, we would get together and go to the horse races. Racing is something that has been going on for generations down in smalltown Mississippi.”
When playing four quarters on the football field ended two years ago, Carter turned his attention to navigating four quarters on the racetrack.
His first drive would come in the fifth race at Newton, a half-mile oval in the Illinois city of the same name, a non-betting dash for pacers that drew four starters on the afternoon of June 24, 2024.
The race held special meaning well beyond it being the first race of his career.
“It was with my brother’s horse,” said Carter, of Counselor Em, a daughter of Major Bombay (IL) trained and co-owned by Jaivyian Carter. “It was on my mind the whole week leading up to the race. I prayed and said, ‘God, if I never get another win, let this be the one.’ My brother and I grew up like two peas in a pod. We’re very close – some people call us twins because we are so much alike. I wanted to win it for him. When it came down to that moment, I won’t lie… I was nervous.”
That anxiousness amped up once the race got underway.
“When we got to the half, I thought, ‘I won’t be able to get out, and I won’t be able to win it,’” Jacquavyian said.
Then, with a little help from the racing gods, an opportunity arose.
“After the three-quarter pole, a hole opened up and I just went through it,” he said.
By the end of the mile, Jacquavyian Counselor Em were 7¼ lengths clear of their closest rival, in a time of 2:05.1.
For the young man in the race bike, the victory was his own Little Brown Jug moment.
“I won races after that, but there will not be another moment like that for me,” said Jacquavyian, who went 7-8-14 from 55 starts in 2024.
The night of Nov. 9, 2025, at Hawthorne Race Course would come close.
It happened to be a miserable evening, weather-wise, a muddled mix of cold, dreary, and damp.
Factor in the 40-1 odds beside RK’s Toni number on the tote board, and it appeared to be heading towards a very forgettable experience for Jacquavyian.
“It was crazy,” he said. “I was training and working for Roshun Trigg and took a couple horses up there for him to race. I paddocked those horses, warmed them up and it was a rainy, cold night. I didn’t know if we could get the win, but I went out there thinking it was possible. I took her out there, she warmed up well and she felt good.”
RK’s Toni, a daughter of Revenge Shark (IL), hadn’t won since Feb. 16, 2025, when she recorded her second straight score, also at Hawthorne.
Given her affinity for the racetrack and the long runway from the final turn to the finish line, Jacquavyian felt the pair had an outside chance to take all the spoils.
“At the top of the lane at Hawthorne — it is a mile track — it sets up for a long stretch drive to the wire,” he said. “I was way in the back, but once we straightened home, everything just opened up and she swooped them. This horse loves that track and she started passing them, one by one. I’m getting happier and happier. I got there right at the wire.”
It was all smiles, literally, after the half-length victory in 1:58.2, Jacquavyian’s first pari-mutuel win.
“If you go back and watch the replay, you will see smiling from ear to ear,” he said. “It was unbelievable. That is another one I will never forget.”
Jacquavyian is to add more to that list.
Last year, he posted a 30-47-53 mark from 308 starts, along with $185,598 in purse earnings.
“I learned a lot,” he said. “I learned from my mistakes and how not to make them over and over. When you first start off, you are going to drive a lot of longshots, but every race, you learn something, small or big. When you drive horses, who might not have the best chance to win, it helps you drive better. Win or lose, you find something that helps you.
“Every time I race, I go back and watch the replay, to see what happened here or there, things that I can improve on. You will make mistakes, but if you can learn from it, you will become a better driver, and people will put you on more horses. And I never blame the horse. If I make a mistake, I own up to it.”
Jacquavyian is also leaning on lessons learned from his football days to help him in his harness racing career.
And there are plenty that he has incorporated.
“Early mornings, a lot of discipline, working hard, being humble – just the grind of it all,” he said. “Each and every day, you wake up with the goal of being 1 per cent better than yesterday.
“Football is still a very important part of my life, but it is now transformed in a different way to my life in racing. All the exercise and discipline you need to be successful in football is the same approach you need in driving. Football has made the switch to driving easier in a lot of ways.”
Currently, he is in New York, specifically, at Vernon Downs, working for trainer George Ducharme.
“My short-term goal is to get more drives, becoming better at what I do and getting looked at more,” he said. “I am trying to get drives here and get my name out here, showing that I can compete with the other drivers.
“Some of my long-term goals are to drive as many horses, win as many races as I can, and make owners happy. I want to make people smile because I am smiling all the time. When I come off the track and see them smile, it will make me do the same thing.”
Don’t expect the 21-year-old Jacquavyian to fumble the ball.
“I feel like I have a big future in this sport if I keep my head down and work hard to succeed at something I love,” he said.
