It was his first season as a starter in 2011 when the team went 4-9 and coach Pat Hill was fired. The Bulldogs bounced back under coach Tim DeRuyter last season to win a share of the Mountain West title. But Carr played that entire season with a sports hernia injury that required offseason surgery and caused pain every time he sneezed or tried to get out of bed.
"That stuff means way more to me than people saying good game," Derek said. "It shows a lot about this town and how much they genuinely care about people. They don't have to think about us or pray for us but they took the time to do it."
All throughout the ordeal, Derek kept his problems to his family and coaches as not to cause a distraction to his teammates or cause a media frenzy for his family. After one brief setback in September, when Dallas had to go back into the hospital for a third operation, all has gone well the past two months. Dallas, who was below his birth weight of 7 pounds, 11 ounces as a one-month old, now weighs more than 12 pounds.
"It's just nice to know he's better and he's not helpless,Nike Air Max Goedkoop Bestellen," Carr said. "He's not just sitting in a hospital and there's nothing I can do for him. Now I can actually feed him a bottle."
None of those aspirations ever seemed as trivial as they did three days into fall camp when the joy of the birth of his first child quickly turned to fear when little Dallas Carr began vomiting a green substance and had to be rushed in the middle of the night to a neonatal intensive care unit where he would spend 23 days.
"Nothing will be too big for him," former Fresno State quarterback Trent Dilfer said. "He's not going to be surprised by anything,Maglia Inter 2019 Originale, the pressure or the ridicule or the dynamic of the locker room or the coaching. None of that will take him off guard because he has Dave as a brother. That's a huge advantage for him."
Despite those gaudy numbers, Derek is not expected to match David's draft position. David was the No. 1 overall pick in 2002, going to the expansion Houston Texans where he was sacked an NFL record 76 times as a rookie.
"This is where I wanted to come because I wanted to finish what my brother started," Derek said. "When I feel something in my heart, I have to go with it. I came here from Day 1,Tottenham Hotspur Shirt, and my brother told me it wasn't always going to be great. It will be hard sometimes."
That relationship started when David arrived at the school in 1997 and Derek became his most avid fan. Derek watched almost every game during the magical 2001 season that included wins over Colorado, Wisconsin and Oregon State to open the season and put David on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
Derek is excelling as well, both on the field and as a father. Headed into Saturday's game at San Diego State, Carr had No. 15 Fresno State (6-0, 3-0 Mountain West) at its highest ranking since David Carr pushed them to No. 8 in 2001.
It all started shortly after Derek's wife, Heather, gave birth to Dallas Carr on Aug. 5. That night Derek noticed his son had green vomit and told the nurses. Dallas was rushed to the ICU at a nearby children's hospital with intestinal malrotation ? a disorder where the intestines twist when the fetus is in the uterus and don't form in the correct position.
The Bulldogs' run to become the first BCS buster ended after a 6-0 start when Boise State came to town and knocked off Fresno State 35-30. That game left Derek in tears and made this season's 41-40 win over the Broncos in September that ended with Derek hugging David so meaningful.
Derek has set school records for career completions and touchdowns and is closing in on the mark for career yards passing.
"It used to be just me playing football and I was just focused on myself," he said. "Now it's not about me at all. It's about my family. I have to take care of them. Everything we went through with our son has made me tougher ? mentally, physically and spiritually."
Carr went into the weekend completing 70.4 percent of his passes for 2,Air Max Pas Cher En Ligne,276 yards, 23 touchdowns and four interceptions. He was second in the nation in yards per game and touchdowns, trailing only Oregon State's Sean Mannion.
Dilfer has expected greatness from Derek for years, predicting on an ESPN broadcast that he would set all the major passing records at the school before he even took his first snap.
FRESNO, Calif. (AP) ? The goals Derek Carr set out ever since he was an 8-year-old boy watching big brother David star at quarterback for Fresno State more than a decade ago were there to be seized at the start of his senior season.
"He gets it," Dilfer said. "He gets life and he gets competition. He's a 'gets-it' guy. That goes a long way. It sounds very simple but that goes a long way. There are guys who don't get it.
Dallas had two operations before he was a week old and spent more than three weeks in the hospital before he was finally allowed to go home just before Derek played his season opener against Rutgers.
"I think it speaks well to the kind of character he has," DeRuyter said. "There could be outside distractions or internal distractions when you're not physically 100 percent but he finds a way to overcome those. That's the mark of any true competitor. It's never going to be perfect for you. Guys are going to have bumps and bruises, guys are going to have things going on on the field, off the field and you have to be able to compartmentalize and push through. He's doing it at as high a level as anybody I've been around."
Derek made his story public in an interview with The New York Times that ran on the day of the opener and the publicity has led to scores of letters, emails and good wishes from fans and parents who went through similar ordeals.
"We didn't know if he was going to be alive or not," Carr said.
Carr broke Paul Pinegar's school records for touchdowns and completions last week and is on pace to break Kevin Sweeney's school record for yards passing next month.
Dilfer praised Carr's quick release, arm strength and decision-making but said a more intangible attribute will be most beneficial as he tries to succeed in the NFL next year.
"He's not one of them."
After three operations to fix his intestines, 11-week old Dallas is thriving now. He sleeps through the night,Cheap Jerseys From China, keeps food down and is growing so quickly Derek thinks he will be a lineman ? not a quarterback.
David never developed into the star quarterback he was projected to be despite spending 11 seasons in the NFL. He was a backup for his final six years, winning a Super Bowl ring as a member of the New York Giants in 2011.
Watching what David went through as a pro will make Derek's adjustment to the NFL that much easier,Wholesale Authentic Jerseys.
A record book to rewrite. A BCS bowl berth to pursue. NFL draft position to improve. A Heisman Trophy campaign to launch.
Carr never revealed the injury until after the season, taking criticism for poor pocket presence and footwork because he was physically limited.