Nakwaine Carter, - Prep Redzone

Nakwaine Carter

Defensive Line

2026 Class

6'3" Height

255 Weight

Southmoore School

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Position Rank

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About Nakwaine

Nakwaine Carter is a 6'3" Defensive Line in the 2026 class. Carter attends Southmoore in Oklahoma. Carter's Player Profile was created on February 12, 2024. Subscribe to Prep Redzone to see where Nakwaine Carter is ranked and what our scouts have written about them.

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Expert Analysis

Michael Knight

Prep Redzone Lead Scout

Southmoore defensive lineman Nakwaine Carter Nakwaine Carter 6'3" | 255 lbs | DL Southmoore | 2026 State OK is right there with Battle and you could honestly flip a coin between the two of them and be happy with the results. Carter is an absolute monster on the defensive line and he has steadily gotten better over the last few seasons to the point where he is one of the more dominant interior defensive linemen in the state. First off, like most great defensive linemen, Carter has had to deal with countless double teams this season. In the rare case where he’s not double-teamed, Carter makes the opponent pay immediately. He is an incredibly well balanced defensive lineman. He can be a force on the line of scrimmage but even when he’s not getting in the backfield, he can impact the game in other ways. Whether it’s opening holes for teammates or getting his hands into the passing lane.

6 months ago

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Michael Knight

Prep Redzone Lead Scout

Senior defensive lineman Nakwaine Carter Nakwaine Carter 6'3" | 255 lbs | DL Southmoore | 2026 State OK committed to Kansas earlier this offseason and he is very firmly one of the top defensive lineman prospects in the state. Carter is so incredibly disruptive from the middle of the defensive line. We’ve watched him in person a few times and each time, it’s amazing how much of the game he impacts. The obvious moments are exactly that. When he pushes an offensive lineman into the backfield and breaks up a play. But his IQ is outstanding. He always has his eye on the quarterback and even if he’s being held up by a double team, he gets his hands up in the passing lane. He’s a special player.

10 months ago

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Michael Knight

Prep Redzone Lead Scout

Southmoore defensive tackle Nakwaine Carter Nakwaine Carter 6'3" | 255 lbs | DL Southmoore | 2026 State OK was one of the more physically impressive prospects that we watched in person in the last month. At the Carl Albert team camp, Carter was an absolute menace on the line of scrimmage and demanded opposing offensive lines send two or even three guys at him. Carter has a high on-field IQ because even when a quarterback drops back and gets a clean pocket, Carter has his eyes in the backfield and can get his hands into the passing lane in the blink of an eye. So even when he’s contained from a pure rusher standpoint, he finds a way to impact the game. Earlier this month, Carter gave his verbal commitment to Kansas. He’s a legitimate power four prospect and his ceiling continues to get higher. We think he and the rest of this Southmoore team is primed for a big 2025 football season.

11 months ago

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Michael Knight

Prep Redzone Lead Scout

Southmoore’s Nakwaine Carter Nakwaine Carter 6'3" | 255 lbs | DL Southmoore | 2026 State OK has been an intriguing prospect in the state’s 2026 class for a while now. His recruitment has been pretty steady over the last 18 months and Carter has firmly established himself as one of the better players at his position. The thing that impresses us the most about Carter is his steady development and every time we’ve seen him in person, he’s better than the last time. Checking Carter out on film, you also see that disruption from the line of scrimmage. Now, the biggest question we have about Carter is what scheme will he fit in the best at the next level. Will he be more of an interior defensive lineman or move out to the edge? Either way, he has the ability to make an impact and cause havoc.

1 year ago

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Michael Knight

Prep Redzone Lead Scout

Southmoore defensive lineman Nakwaine Carter Nakwaine Carter 6'3" | 255 lbs | DL Southmoore | 2026 State OK is a defensive prospect that we think has a lot of potential moving forward. He’s not the biggest guy at his position but he’s a guy that has a lot of tools in the belt to beat opponents time after time. We might have mentioned this in the past but Carter also benefits from being coached by a guy in Christian Littlehead who has the reputation for being one of the best defensive line trainers in the state. Working with him on a daily basis is definitely going to only make Carter better moving forward. Compared to some of the other guys on this breakdown, we haven’t seen Carter in person as much but from what we have seen, we’re incredibly impressed.

2 years ago

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Michael Knight

Prep Redzone Lead Scout

We mentioned earlier that we like both sides of the line of scrimmage for Southmoore and while Hornbeck leads the way for the offense, we like junior Nakwaine Carter Nakwaine Carter 6'3" | 255 lbs | DL Southmoore | 2026 State OK on the defensive side. Carter emerged last season as a legitimate prospect in the state’s 2026 class. He’s already on the radar for college coaches and has picked up a handful of offers. He’s not flying under the radar as much anymore but we think that he could end up elevating his play this season. Carter will lead a defensive line that could be very disruptive throughout the year. If Southmoore gets strong play from the guys up front, that will set them up for success down the line.

2 years ago

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Michael Knight

Prep Redzone Lead Scout

On the defensive side of the line of scrimmage, look out for Southmoore defensive lineman Nakwaine Carter Nakwaine Carter 6'3" | 255 lbs | DL Southmoore | 2026 State OK this fall. Carter would end up getting on the radar back in the fall when he picked up his first offer. We got a chance to watch Carter in person this spring and a few things stand out to us. And the first one is his motor. It was May and a team camp session but Carter was playing like it was a playoff game. He was giving everything to every rep and that was a nightmare for opposing offensive linemen. Carter was lining up mainly as a defensive tackle and he might fit the definition of a “tweener” in recruiting. He’s not a prototypical prospect at either position but you can’t argue with the production and skill level.

2 years ago

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Michael Knight

Prep Redzone Lead Scout

A year ago at this time, the defensive line position in the state’s 2026 class wasn’t very deep. It’s getting deeper with no signs of slowing down. The two highest ranked newcomers to the latest ranking update are both on the defensive line. Southmoore’s Nakwaine Carter Nakwaine Carter 6'3" | 255 lbs | DL Southmoore | 2026 State OK emerged just in the last month as a prospect that is on the radar of not only D1 schools but at the P5 level. And it’s not hard to figure out why. Carter has the prototypical size and he’s been coached up by former OSU defensive lineman Christian Littlehead, who is without a doubt one of the best DL trainers in the state.