HELENA -- Carroll College football fans can now rejoice as the Fighting Saints returned to the practice field to open their fall workouts, Thursday. Leading into Thursday's first practice, the Fighting Saints announced their four captains for the 2021 season: Matt Burgess and Andrew Carter on offense, TJ Abraham and Rex Irby on defense.
"You look back during the recruiting process and you hear about all the great teams that Carroll's had in the past. Six national championships and you think about the guys that come along with that, and the leadership that led us to those national titles and it's an honor to be in the same breadth as those guys," said Irby.
"Honestly my first impression, I was happy. I mean, no matter who you are, you want to be a team captain and so having these guys vote for me and put me as a captain role is a pretty -- a big honor and I'm glad that they chose me," said Carter.
PHOTOS: Carroll College Football opens fall camp
As captains, each gave a short speech to their peers when their name was announced. For Burgess, his goal is to ensure each and every player holds one another accountable from day one to the end of the season.
"I was talking about how we got to hold each other accountable as a team because the coaches can only see so much. If you see someone messing up, you know, try to coach them. Help them out. See some guy slacking off, get back on track," said Burgess.
With COVID-19 forcing the Saints into a spring season earlier in 2021, that season was a success for the Fighting Saints as they were able to go 3-1 in the regular season, leading to a playoff berth. Now with the team together in its entirety, Abraham said he's excited to be a leader.
"It was good to finally see the full team, you know, together. Not have to spread out or anything, actually have a full roster," said Abraham. "Just the excitement that comes with fall camp. We hadn't had it for a while."
