The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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OCTOBER 2023 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 25 of the athletic programs at Riverview High School. In addition to his athletic prowess, Carr demonstrated leadership since he served as the junior class presi- dent in 1961-62. Carr's parents gave him all the love that they could give him. They helped him develop a tireless work ethic, a strong Christian faith, and a deep ap- preciation for education that served Lloyd well for his entire life. Carr's youth sports coaches taught him to practice hard and compete at a high level. His high school coaches had a huge impact on Carr, especially his varsity coaches since he played for each of them for three years. COLLEGE ATHLETE AT MISSOURI AND NORTHERN MICHIGAN Carr's outstanding credentials helped him earn a football scholarship to the University of Missouri. He played for Dan Devine's Tigers from 1964 to 1966. Missouri went 14-5-2 in Carr's last two seasons in Columbia. However, he wasn't playing enough. When assistant coach Rollie Dotsch left to take the head coaching job at North- ern Michigan University, Carr followed him all the way to Marquette, Mich. I am sure that his beloved mother packed him a warm coat and hat when he went north! Brrrr! Carr had an opportunity to become a starting quarterback again. In those days, transfers had to sit out for a year. He learned his way around Marquette in 1966, went to practice and started working on a master's degree in educa- tional leadership. In 1967, he became the starting quar- terback for Northern Michigan. He helped lead the Wildcats to a perfect regular-season record of 9 wins and 0 losses. Unfortunately, Northern Michi- gan lost to Fairmont State in the NAIA semifinals and ended the season with a final record of 9-1. The 1967 Northern Michigan Univer- sity football team was the first Wildcat team to win nine games in a season. It was also the first Wildcat team to post an undefeated season of more than two games. The entire 1967 team now holds a spot in the Northern Michigan Hall of Fame for their outstanding season in 1967. Carr completed 52 of 99 passes for 642-yards and threw 4 touch- down passes. He guided the NMU o f f e n s e t o a n average of 25.9 points per game. One of his favor- i te ta rge ts wa s a player named Jesse Jenkins who played with Carr at Riverview for two years. Yes, Carr fin- ished his college football career on a very positive note. He also left Mar- quette, Mich., with a Master of Arts in Educational Leadership. Now, he was ready to start his "real" career. CARR BEGINS HIS TEACHING AND COACHING CAREER After graduation, Carr returned to the Detroit area to start his teaching and coaching career. He served as a teacher and assistant coach at Detroit Nativity High School from 1968-69. Carr moved on to a four-year stint at Belleville High School in Belleville, Mich., from 1970-73. In 1973, Carr took the head coaching job at John Glenn High School in West- land, Mich. He rebuilt the program over the course of the next three seasons, which culminated in an outstanding re- cord of 8 wins and 1 loss in 1975. Carr earned Regional Coach of the Year hon- ors in 1975. Somehow, in the midst of coaching and teaching English and history, Carr also found time to do something else. Carr ran for a vacant position on the school board and won. At 30 years of age, he was already finding ways to im- pact the community that he loved so much. He was able to juggle all of these re- sponsibilities and move forward in his coaching career. Carr told me that he learned a lot about leadership while serving on the Riverview School Board. He became even more passionate about teaching, learning and education, if that was even possible. In 1976, Ed Chlebek, Eastern Michi- gan University's new head coach, made Carr an offer that he couldn't refuse. Well, Lloyd could have refused it, but he didn't. Carr made a big decision to be- come a full-time college assistant foot- ball coach for the Hurons. Things went badly for EMU in 1976 since the Hurons ended the season with a final record of 2 wins and 9 losses. Year 2 of the Chlebek Era went much better. The Hurons finished the season with a record of 8-3-0. Chlebek's suc- cess earned him a promotion to the job at Boston College. Carr did not go to Boston with Chlebek. After Chlebek's departure, Carr moved on to a new job at the University of Illinois in 1978. Carr's new boss was a guy named Moeller, Gary Moeller. Carr served as one of Moeller's assistants for two seasons. Moeller and his staff were all fired at the end of the 1979 season. Illinois posted a record of 3 wins, 16 losses and 3 ties in Moeller's last two seasons. Carr probably did not have any great memories from his two seasons in Champaign, Ill. Things definitely did not work out at the University of Illinois for Coach "Mo" and his staff. So, Moeller, Carr and everyone else on the Illinois football staff were all looking for a job in January 1980. As it turned out, Carr found his way to Ann Arbor in August of 1980. The rest, as they say, is history! ❑ Barry Gallagher is the best-selling author of seven books, including four about Michigan Wolverines football. Carr's collegiate coaching career started as defensive backs coach at Eastern Michigan University in 1976. PHOTO COURTESY EASTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS