Former Ram Carthel Returns to Old Stomping Grounds a National Champion

SAN ANGELO, TX-- Texas A&M-Commerce head coach Colby Carthel has wreaked havoc on the Lone Star Conference since the Clinton administration.

Carthel donned the blue and gold from 1996 to 1999.

“Pretty much anywhere he’s gone, he’s won,” said one of Carthel’s coaches at Angelo State University when introducing him at the Angelo Football Clinic.

Carthel, who was a linebacker during his time at ASU, helped guide the Rams to a 29-14 record during his four years, including a 10-2 record in 1997 and a trip to the NCAA Division II Playoffs.

Even before Colby donned a blue and gold jersey in the LSC, his father, Don Carthel, had already made the Carthel name known throughout the conference’s ranks with a four-year playing career at Eastern New Mexico University.

Don would go back to his alma-mater with a seven-year stint as the head coach of the Greyhounds from 1985 to 1991 before eventually landing as the head coach of West Texas A&M University in 2005 after a brief sabbatical, volunteer coaching gig at Abilene Christian in 2000 and a one-year stint as the head coach and general manager of the Amarillo Dusters in the Indoor Football League.

Don now does Special Teams Quality Control at Texas A&M-Commerce with his son.

In 2013, Colby was tasked with turning around the program at Commerce and has done just that.

Heading into his sixth season as the head coach of the Lions, Carthel and his squad have never missed the postseason and have made it to the NCAA Division II Playoffs in each of the past three seasons. Oh, and his Lions won the 2017 Division II National Championship in Kansas City, the first Lone Star Conference school to do so since Southwest Texas State, known now as Texas State, did so in 1982.

Since winning the National Championship in December, Carthel has been busy making appearance after appearance, speaking at different schools and functions, as well as throwing out the first pitch at the Texas Rangers game against the Seattle Mariners on April 22.

But the Friona native says nothing means more than coming back to San Angelo to speak at the Angelo Football Clinic as a National Champion.

“It’s a great honor to come back,” Carthel said. “All of these directors are all of my old coaches and some of the best in the business and history of the game. So, to be able to come back and take part in this clinic, it’s been on my bucket list...We’ve been all around the country speaking, but nothing tops this. This is the pinnacle for a college coach.”

Carthel spoke on Wednesday, sharing the stage with big names like current University of North Texas offensive coordinator Graham Harrell, legendary Texas high school coach Randy Allen of Highland Park and, the biggest name to grace the stage at the clinic, Alabama’s Nick Saban.

“I don’t know if [my name] is up there at that level. Those are some big time names,” Carthel said, also alluding to guys like Bum Phillips who founded the event.

“There’s a lot of emotion, a lot of anxiety. I may be the first guy to go up there and cry and wet my britches at the same time,” Carthel jokingly added before taking the stage.

To go with the 2017 National Championship, Carthel saw numerous Lions make it to the next level, including Luis Perez who signed an undrafted free agent deal with the Los Angeles Rams in the NFL.

Carthel boasts a 49-15 record in his five seasons at Commerce including an impressive 29-7 mark in conference play.

Texas A&M-Commerce will host the Angelo State Rams on Saturday, Nov. 10, to close out the regular season.