End of Carter-Riverside’s 30-year playoff drought connects father and son
When Michael Walters suited up for Fort Worth Carter-Riverside football in 1995, the Eagles hadn’t made the state playoffs since 1959.
Playoff berths were tough to come by, especially considering only the top two teams in the district advanced at the time. But that team managed to make program history, reaching the postseason for the first time in 36 years.
“There were 22 players on varsity that year,” said Walters, who was a sophomore receiver and special teams player. “I just remember we had the same six plays that all had a variation of each other. And we just ran it to repetition. We’re not the fastest, we’re not the biggest, but we’re going to run these plays better than anybody else.”
That season ended one long drought and began another. For the next 30 years, Carter-Riverside football came up short of the postseason. That streak, although unfortunate for Riverside, connected a father and son.
On Friday, Ryan Walters, son of Michael Walters, helped lead the Eagles to the postseason with a win over Western Hills, rushing for 99 yards on 16 carries. Now, making rare history for Riverside is something they have in common.
Carter-Riverside will face Alvarado in the Class 4A Division I bi-district round at 7 p.m. Thursday at Farrington Field.
“This means a lot. I’m just really happy,” Ryan Walters said. “Our team, we worked really hard for this. I’m glad we could do this. It was losing season after losing season. All of our players were getting frustrated. We don’t know why, but we just couldn’t win.”
In Ryan Walters’ senior season, the team finally turned the corner. Michael Walters said he had some flashbacks to his high school days as time expired Friday.
“After watching the last three seasons and seeing the improvements from Ryan’s team, I was proud and happy for him more than anything,” Michael Walters said.
Those improvements this season were sparked by first-year head coach David Lara, a Carter-Riverside alum, who can relate to the players and the reputation of losing football they have to deal with. Ryan Walters said Lara quickly instilled a culture of hard work and trust — one that produced results and helped the team defy expectations.
“He really pushed us,” Ryan Walters said. “He said it doesn’t matter what happens. Before every game, he said the scoreboard will take care of itself. All we’ve got to do is worry about the two things we can control, which are our effort and our attitude.”
In his journey as an athlete to get to this point, Ryan Walters has developed with guidance from an experienced athlete. Michael Walters played at Texas Lutheran and was a graduate assistant for two seasons at Texas A&M-Commerce.
He never forced Ryan Walters to love the game, but he gravitated toward it, despite his mother’s concerns about head injuries. Throughout his athletic journey, Ryan Walters has received tough love and guidance from his father, who wants him to thrive.
After the game, Michael Waters first told his son he was proud of the victory. But he also made sure to point out where Ryan could improve.
“There was a turnover that happened that he was a part of,” Michael Walters said. “I said, ‘I’m just glad you and your teammates were able to find a way to win.’ … I had to dig at him a little bit. It’s part of the game.”
Michael Walters understands that discipline learned in football can be useful anywhere in life. Having lived through high school football and being separated from it for nearly three decades, he still sees the benefits of the game in his life.
“All the risk involved is real,” Michael Walters said. “But all the value I got out of it — being with your teammates and going through that adversity. Showing up for things even when you don’t want to, and the commitment to your teammates, has served me in my life. I think [that lesson] is invaluable. ... I want [Ryan] to have that same commitment.”
Beyond the lessons, Carter-Riverside football has blessed the Walters family with lifelong friendships.
“To this day, I have four core friends from that team,” Michael Walters said. “I was the best man in one of their weddings. One was the best man at my wedding. ... Lifelong friends.”
Ryan Walters said he expects the same bonds to be maintained as he enters adulthood.
“All my friends from Carter-Riverside are all from sports,” Ryan Walters said. “I hang out with them on the weekends after we win a game, or we’ll go out to eat. ... Those are my closest friends.”
Although making the playoffs is the memory he’ll cherish the most, Ryan Walters said he’ll remember the little things, like morning practices with friends. As a senior, those opportunities are fleeting.
Carter-Riverside is a massive underdog against Alvarado, a state power, but if this season has taught the Eagles anything, it’s that believing in yourself can lead to newfound, unprecedented success.
Regardless of what happens Thursday, the Walters’ name is forever tied to two historic seasons at Carter-Riverside.
“We really never thought about going to the playoffs here at Carter-Riverside; it was just like we’re going to lose,” Ryan Walters said after Friday’s game. “We knew that we were like a 1-4 team [in district], but this year we turned it around and finally started winning games.
“It’s a dream come true.”
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