It
has been described as the single greatest performance by a high school athlete
of all time, in any sport. He set what many consider to be the single greatest
mark ever by a high school athlete at the 1979 Golden West Invitational in
Sacramento, Calif.
Carter won the men's shot put with a throw of 24.77 meters/81 feet 3.50 inches,
which added more than 10 feet to the previous national prep record. No athlete
since has come within five feet of Carter's mark, which still stands as the best
ever, with any weight of shot put implement.
A star thrower
at Jefferson High School in Dallas, Tex., from 1977-79 Carter won three 4A state
titles in the shot and one in the discus. In 1983, SMU reached the pinnacle of
track and field achievement, as the Mustangs won national team titles both
indoors and outdoors as four SMU individuals, Michael Carter, Keith Connor, Sven
Nylander and Robert Weir, claimed seven individual national titles in 1983.
Carter, an All-SWC defensive tackle for the Mustang football team in 1983,
captured a phenomenal seven out of a possible eight NCAA titles in the shot put
during his career at SMU. He established an NCAA indoor meet record in the shot
put in 1981 (69-8 ½), and went on to earn a silver medal in the shot at the 1984
Summer Olympics. A 5th round draft pick by the San Francisco 49ers in the 1984
NFL Draft, and anchored the 49er defensive line for nine seasons, earning three
Super Bowl championships in 1985, 1989 and 1990.