Carter Crossland’s passion for football started at a young age.
His grandfather, Gary Holland, was an all-star player for their small-town high school in Utah. He also ran track, sharing stories of his triumph with Carter when he was young. Hearing his grandfather reflect on his time as an athlete motivated Carter to pursue opportunities on the field and court..
“Something like that you’re just born into,” Carter said.
Carter was born six weeks premature. His arms and legs never fully developed.
Carter was surrounded by a great support system growing up. His friends included him in all of their activities, modifying sleds or foldable lawn chairs so he could sled or rock climb alongside them.
While in high school, his cousin, Brian Wade, was the defensive coordinator for the football team. Carter shadowed his cousin, learning how to break down film from a coach’s perspective. It opened his eyes to a new realm of possibilities in coaching.
“All of my cousins were on the football team,” Carter said. “I had a jersey just like everybody else. I spent a lot of time with the coaches, I learned how to watch film from a coach’s perspective. Life kinda took off from there.”
Carter landed his first coaching gig while he was in college at Southern Utah University. He was a defensive assistant at Millard High School. Following his marriage, he made the move to Chandler, Ariz., where he was away from the game for two years. He and his family moved to Wickenburg, a small town northwest of the Phoenix metropolitan area. Much of Carter’s family had migrated to Wickenburg already, including his uncle, who was a youth football coach in town.
He didn’t land a job immediately with the high school, coaching youth football for a year with his uncle after arriving in Wickenburg. But in 2022, he was given the opportunity to join the high school staff under head coach Ishmael MacNeil
Carter recently completed his third season with the Wranglers. He is now an associate head coach and defensive coordinator. He’s had the opportunity to coach three of his cousins, something that he said has been special.
He’s become a bit of an icon in the community, driving his power wheelchair to the school for practices on a daily basis in the spring, fall and summer.
Carter landed a head coaching job soon after. However, it turned out to be the right opportunity at the wrong time. He turned it down for family reasons, but has since applied to other opportunities.
His goal is to lead his own program in the near future. He feels he is ready for the challenge.
“It would be super hard to leave Wickenburg,” Carter said. “But I know one thing I’ve learned is you chase jobs that you really want. It’s one of those things where you have to do what’s best for your family. If God wants me to go somewhere, he’ll take me there.”
As of this season, Carter was named the interim head coach at Wickenburg High School.
Mike Ingram goes from the hardwood to the gridiron
Mike Ingram shares slightly different aspirations in coaching than Carter. He doesn’t have the desire to be a head coach. He simply enjoys being an assistant behind the scenes, helping make a difference in the lives of youth.
Mike attended multiple sports camps growing up, but the most memorable came in 1996 and 1997. Mike attended a camp held by NBA legend Michael Jordan. Mke said, at the time, he was meeting his hero.
Little did he know he would perform well at the camp, earning the opportunity to play against Jordan one-on-one. A grainy 1997 video shows a young Mike scoring against Jordan.
“Luckily he picked me the second year,” Mike said. “The funny story is I forgot my camera that day. Luckily, one of the kids, he was a bit younger than me but went to the same school, his dad was there and had his video camera. No one would ever believe me but thank goodness that his dad was there and they got video of it.”
Mike’s passion for sports started well before that unforgettable day. But it further fueled his passion.
Mike was born six weeks premature with VATER Syndrome, an acronym for a group of congenital disorders that affect the vertebrae, heart, trachea and other areas of the body. He was born with no radial bones in either forearm and no thumbs on either hand. However, doctors moved his right index finger to his left hand to form a thumb.
He also has scoliosis, a condition that causes the spine to curve. Additionally, Mike was born with one kidney.
“I couldn’t play tackle football because I could get hit in my kidney then I would need a transplant,” Mike said.
Mike still dabbled in flag football, a version of the sport with far less contact. He was the quarterback and he was also an avid basketball player.
He was cut from the hoops team as an eighth grader. He was cut again as a junior and senior in high school despite playing his first two years.
He used that experience, as well as his faith, as motivation for all of the endeavors in his life. And as his playing career closed, his path to coaching and announcing opened.
“I had to do community service, so I started refereeing and coaching at my local YMCA,” Mike said. “My boss goes, ‘You have an announcer’s voice.’ So I started doing [public address] announcing for summer basketball tournaments and I did a little PA announcing at the high school I went to.”
Mike studied sports journalism at San Diego State University. He landed his first sports reporter job in Medford, Oregon, anchoring the weekend sports news for a local station. Years later, after he was laid off, he obtained his physical education credential from Eastern Washington.
“I go through a lot of adversity,” Mike said. “That’s a common theme, adversity. But I stayed patient.”
Mike made his way to Arizona where he began working in Paradise Valley. He was subject to a “probation” period of sorts, which limited him from landing a P.E. teaching job. He made the move to Hamilton High School in Chandler when a film position opened. Eventually, he began a P.E. gig in the Kyrene Elementary School District, where he remains today.
Through his career changes, Mike began coaching football. He landed his first gig at Scottsdale Christian Academy, where he coached Dylan Raiola – the No. 1 quarterback in the 2024 class and now starter at the University of Nebraska – as a freshman. His coaching career took him back to Hamilton, where he has been an offensive assistant the last four years.
The Huskies have been a powerhouse program for decades, winning multiple state titles in the program’s history. With Mike on staff, Hamilton has made it to the Open Division – the state’s premier high school football postseason tournament – every year. He’s also spent time developing younger players, coaching at the junior varsity level, too.
“It’s definitely a blessing to see God’s work in my life,” Mike said. “Iron sharpens iron. You go through fire and you come out better. I thought I was going to be working for ESPN or some big-time network and then I got laid off. … My mindset was to do my best and use the talent I have.”
