By Cara Sievers

Martin Group Inc.s territory sales manager David Carter has been tackling telecom sales for 20-plus years, but before that he spent nine years in the NFL as a center and guard seven with the Houston Oilers and two with the New Orleans Saints.

David says his years in the NFL allowed him to play with some very good clubs and some not so good. In the late 70s and early 80s what he calls the most exciting part of his football career he went with the Oilers to the playoffs three years in a row, with the first two going to the AFC Championship Game against the Pittsburgh Steelers and their Steel Curtain defense.

I was coached then by the legendary Bum Phillips and played with the likes of Earl Campbell and Elvin Bethea, both Hall of Famers, says David. That era in Houston pro football was very special; the oil boom was at its peak and the Astrodome was rocking on Sundays.

Later in his Houston career, David played with Mike Munchak and Bruce Matthews, both recently inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame, and concluded his career with New Orleans, which reunited him with head coach Bum Phillips.

One of Davids most memorable times in the NFL was the Monday Night game in the Houston Astrodome against the Miami Dolphins, which included a 79-yard run by Campbell that many have seen on highlight reels. David says Frank Gifford has maintained that was the best Monday Night Football game he broadcast during his career. David also recalls his first starting assignment, during the 1979 season, at left guard against the Steelers on a Monday night in the Astrodome. And, finally, David gleefully recalls beating the Dan Fouts/Air Coryell Chargers during the playoffs after the 79 season when Campbell, Dan Pastorini and Ken Burrough were sidelined with injuries but teammates Gifford Nielsen, Mike Renfro and Rob Carpenter pulled it through.

In October 1986, David decided his snapping and blocking days were over, and he started a new adventure in telecom sales. He joined Sugar Land Telephone/DPI as a sales representative for OSS/ BSS software, and he also spent some time with CDG as a sales manager for OSS/BSS software and services. His focus on OSS/BSS software, engineering and consulting services continues in his position as territory sales manager for Martin Group.

David has been married for 29 years and has three sons: Brett, a fourth grade teacher; Clay a U.S. Naval Academy graduate and ensign in the U.S. Navy; and Tyler, a senior at Concordia Lutheran in Austin, Texas, soon to be entering law school.

David graduated from Western Kentucky University, where he was inducted into the Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996.

Davids first job: Manual labor at Vincennes Steel in Vincennes, Ind. That reinforced a college education, says David.
Words to live by: The difference between the good ones and the great ones is how fast you get up. Former NFL Coach Bum Phillips
Greatest wish: To be 24 again and playing in the NFL.
Thoughts on telecom: The industry is in an exciting and scary time with regulatory pressures, new technology and consolidation. The fun is back in the telecom business.

Do you know someone who has Personality+? Were looking for interesting characters in telecom to take the spotlight! Please send nominations to Cara Sievers at [email protected].