By LEE BRECHEEN, Louisiana Football Magazine/TV
On a Parkway High School team which has a lot of talent, the Panthers’ coaches believe their best player is Carter Wells, a senior safety and punt returner.
“Not only on the basis of just talent, but overall, Carter Wells (6-0, 175 pounds) is the best player on our team, and we have some very talented kids here,” said Parkway head coach Coy Brotherton. “He’s a big time leader and we are so glad he’s on our team and coming back for his senior season this fall.”
As a junior, Wells made 69 tackles with an interception, and five pass breakups. He was a second-team All District 1-5A selection.
He got an early start in the game.
“I started playing football at 4 years old with a flag football team in SPAR,” said Wells. “When I turned 5, I started playing contact football for the South Bossier Panthers and then I played for the Bossier Spikes for two years. For my 4th-6th grade years I played for the South Bossier Panthers again and in middle school I played for the Elm Grove Eagles.”
He has thrived at Parkway and credits his coaches for that.
“I love my head coach. He’s a coach you can joke around with off the field. He makes you feel comfortable the day you walk in as a freshman. My position coaches the past two years are Michael Concillio and Chris Kannady. Both of these guys are awesome people and coaches.
“Coach Concillio has a tough, military-type coaching style when you first meet him, but as you become closer with him as a player, he’s one of the funniest people to be around. He makes sure you are always giving 100 percent and wants you to be better as a player. Coach Kannady is a straight get-to-business type of coach with a sarcastic attitude every once in a while. You are guaranteed to be better while being on his side and you are also going to be able to have regular conversation with him like he’s one of your teammates.”
Wells knows he must improve this season and going forward.
“I need to get better as a football player. I could work on just overall perfecting my craft as a defensive back. I just started playing DB about a year ago and I’ve learned a lot but I know I have a lot of learning left and technique to learn as I grow older as a player,” he admits.
Looking forward to this fall, Wells points to a friendly rivalry as his most anticipated game.
“I enjoy playing Haughton every year. We are considered rivals because we share a district and the head coaches are brothers, so we call it the ‘Brotherton Bowl.’ Last year’s game ended in a nailbiter in our favor, so they are definitely going to try to get revenge this year.”
Wells believes the caliber of prep football locally speaks for itself.
“I think the Shreveport-Bossier area has tons of underrated talent, guys who don’t get the spotlight as much as they should. I compare the northern part of Louisiana (Districts 1-5A and 2-5A) to the districts down south and I think we are as talented, if not better than them. Every team in the Shreveport-Bossier area has talented players on its roster, no matter what classification.”
In an always competitive 1-5A race, Wells expects the Panthers to again be strong contenders.
“Our team can be in the running for district like last year, and most definitely we can make playoffs again and make a run like we did two years ago. I think our defense will be good again because we have a lot of returning starters who have a lot of experience at the varsity level. A lot of our guys camped all summer and plan on playing in college, so they know to work hard to reach goals and that makes our bond stronger. If we see someone not going 100 percent we encourage them to flip the switch and push through.”
Tidbits on Carter Wells
His favorite part of playing football is “the adrenaline and energy you get from the crowd, band, and fans during the game.”
A serious student – his favorite class is English — with a 3.3 GPA, Wells plans to major in kinesiology. “I think it’s a great major for me since I want to be an athletic director,” he says.
He enjoys playing pickup basketball and working out with friends.
His dad played football, basketball, baseball and ran track at Benton High.
This summer he’s been to camps at Lyon, Stephen F. Austin, McNeese State, Louisiana Christian, Lamar and Harding.
“I’ve been keeping in touch with Lamar, Harding, Centenary, Lyon, Harding and Louisiana College. Centenary has a nice, close to home campus with a very friendly coaching staff that makes you feel at home. Lamar has great coaches who make you feel wanted at their program. The facilities are great and the overall atmosphere of the place is amazing. Lyon College is also a big campus and they treated me as though I was currently attending their school.”
Wells has picked up offers from Centenary, Lyon and John Melvin, a new college in Crowley.
He is a centerfielder for the Panthers’ baseball team who grew up playing middle infield. He’s proud Parkway won the 2022 district title and has won a playoff game each of the past three seasons.
Wells would like to play baseball after high school, along with football, if possible.
Lee Brecheen has operated Louisiana Football Magazine for over 30 years and is one of the state’s foremost experts on high school football and especially recruiting. Based in Baton Rouge, Lee travels statewide to watch practices and games and has broken down film and tape since the late 1980s. He has converted the printed product to an online website (Lafootballmagazine.com) that will preview every high school and college football program in the state before kickoff this fall. Lee also hosts a football-centric TV show on YouTube, The Sports Scouting Report, on weekdays.
