Like many young soccer players who grew up in North Carolina, Chase Rice had the NFL in his sights. After an outstanding second season with the tar heels, that goal seemed realistic.
Then the linebacker, who tore up the ACC in 2006, tore his left ankle at the season opener as a junior. Although he returned in 2007, Rice already knew the professional footballer wouldn’t be on his résumé.
Country music star would be.
But as design time approaches, Rice remembers those days on the field and his hopes of reaching the highest level in football.
“I was definitely feeling this way,” says Rice. “In my (2006) year I was the only player who didn’t come off the field, I could play inside and outside and it looked good. Then in my junior year I only got quarter and a half and that would be my year and hopefully it was we’re on our way to the top of the ACC.
“The next year the ankle wasn’t the same and I wasn’t the same player.”
During the 2009 draft, five tar heels were selected, including the wide receiver Hakeem Nicks to the Giants in the first round. Nicks won a Super Bowl with New York for the 2011 season. Tight End Richard Quinn and Wideout Brandon Tate went into the second round; Garrett Reynolds, one of Rice’s closest friends, was selected in Round 5, as was recipient Brooks Foster.
“I was up there and played the caliber of football these guys were, and that’s why I can say I was up there to be drafted if I hadn’t been injured,” says Rice Games and Show Up and Collect your experiences. I felt like I was right with these guys and I sure believe I had the chance. It didn’t work out that way. “
It worked out pretty well for Rice in another area of entertainment. His current hit is a pairing with Florida Georgia Line: “Drinkin ‘Beer. I’m talking to god. Amen.”
Rice also co-wrote the No. 1 song “Cruise” for the duo, which Florida Georgia Line re-released as a remix with Nelly. Rice alone had two top 5 hits and a double platinum number. 1 in “Eyes On You”.
Some of his songs reflect his days as an athlete, notably “Beats A Million Bucks” and “Carolina Can,” which have become an anthem not only for tar heels fans but also for the state itself.
Rice went to Scooter Carusoe, who had written several hits, for “Carolina Can”.
“I knew he lived in Carolina and” Anything But Mine “(video) was going to be on TV,” says Rice of the Kenny Chesney mega-hit. “I dreamed of writing with Scooter. This was the first time I wrote that I wanted to write a song about going home, a very special place. He knows a lot about Chapel Hill and Asheville, and we started talking to Carolina about my story. But we didn’t really have a catch. As we head off to lunch, he looks at me with that smile and just says, “When I need someone to remind me of who I am, Carolina Can.”
“It was written in a second after; We had a reason why we write. It’s one of my all time favorites … I’ve seen boats named after him and people shout it at the concert. I played the Azalea Festival in Wilmington and didn’t have to sing a word. I’m going to play in Washington State and they all sing it. Anyone can relate to it. Every place has its own story. “
The story of all musicians during the COVID-19 pandemic was the same – they tried to make their work available to fans without being able to play live concerts. Along with his own tours, Rice has opened for Garth Brooks and Chesney – at NFL venues. After performing at a gala for Super Bowl master coach Bruce Arian’s famous golf classic on Sunday, Rice can’t wait to get back on the road.
“It’s different on a soccer field because you go out with your team,” says Rice. “My band and my crew are my team, but there is always the moment when I’m alone before I go on stage. It’s a great feeling, but it can also be lonely. When you’re standing alone, it shows the difference between running with a team and walking out alone, and it’s pretty intense.
“I told a friend of mine in 2017 that it was heartbreaking that I never had the chance to play in the NFL,” recalls Rice, “and he said nothing and I was expecting an answer. And then he says, “Didn’t you just tell me that you played with Kenny Chesney at Lucas Oil Stadium? Isn’t that an NFL stadium?
“That’s a perspective right there; dreams in strange ways have absolutely come true.” ———
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