The Jasper Viking Wrestling program has risen to prominence in recent years thanks to a coaching staff dedicated to making champions on and off the mat. The formula is simple but can take years to implement: the coaches taks young wrestlers interested in the sport and begin the mentoring process through longer-tenured wrestlers who ease newcomers into the system and serve as peer guides.
Senior Carter Reed, who was a member of the 2022-23 Viking squad that captured State Duals and AHSAA State Tournament titles, has benefited from the Vikings’ mentality of hard work, dedication, and athleticism. These qualities, melded with mentorship from the coaching staff and past leaders, have helped to build a continuing legacy that includes both state titles and national accolades.
Carter’s growth both on and off the mat has not only pleased his coaches and family, but also left him with confidence to face tough challenges. Beginning in his fifth-grade year as a member of the Viking Youth Wrestling program, Carter became the Reed family’s second state champion in 2023, following older brother Preston’s 2020 title. Preston’s success appealed to the younger Carter, and he could see that the sky’s the limit if you put in the work.
“When I first met Carter seven years ago, he was young and had a lot to learn,” said Jasper head wrestling coach Tripp Otis. “Since then, he’s turned into one of the most accomplished wrestlers in our program’s history. He’s a great leader who has tremendous support from his parents, Davey and Elizabeth Reed. I know I can speak for the rest of our coaching staff in saying that we are overjoyed at his growth through the years.”
Like leaders before him, Carter now feels the responsibility of leaving the program better than he found it—”it wasn’t going to stop with us,” he says—and has his sights set on closing his prep career with another championship.
Further enhancing Carter’s growth and development in the programs is not only his family’s relationship with the coaches—Otis, as well as local high school wrestling legend Hezzie Morgan—but a strong faith in God that ties everything together. Carter says that Otis and Morgan’s direction involves more than just mat techniques – it includes life lessons as well.
“What they’re teaching is very compatible and complimentary of our home environment. Mom and Dad always strive to instill character and ethics in us. Together with the teachings of Jesus Christ, everything reinforces each other. The lessons I learn from wrestling goes very well with what I’ve read in the Bible,” Reed said.
In turn, Morgan points to the strong foundation the Reed family provides and their endearing support as factors in the boys’ coachability and overall attitude.
“Davey and Elizabeth are dynamite people. They don’t accept half-effort. When you have that in your athletes before they reach your time with you, it’s a tremendous advantage,” Morgan said.
Further emphasizing the obstacles each wrestler must overcome—some physical, some mental—Morgan adds that it’s the coaches’ job to help the athletes overcome them.
“If they can answer the key questions of, ‘Have you given it your very best?’ and ‘How dedicated are you into achieving your goals?’ you can get a gauge on where they are in terms of their overall progress mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Carter is an example of a young man who has developed all of those characteristics to be a leader – so much of that is through teamwork we’ve enjoyed with him and his family,” Morgan added.
Davey Reed, Carter and Preston’s father, serves as a school administrator in the Haleyville City School System and expresses his gratitude for the direction Otis and Morgan has provided for his sons, both on and off the mat.
“Their coaching philosophy is exemplary and both coach Otis and Morgan provide tools that Carter and Preston have used in every part of their lives,” Reed said. “Coach Morgan can reach young people through discipline and being a strong, supportive presence, where coach Otis is a contemplative thinker that helps young people see life from a different perspective. Some kids need two types of coaches like them, while some need them both at different times. Both coaches are like members of our family. Elizabeth and I are incredibly blessed to have them in our sons’ lives and for their guidance.” TG
Cover photo (L-R) Tripp Otis, Carter Reed, and Hezzie Morgan. Photo by Al Blanton.
