Olentangy Liberty senior Carson O’Morrow seemed destined to follow in the footsteps of his father, former Ohio State kicker Pat O’Morrow.
He saw time on varsity as a sophomore, serving as a kickoff specialist and reserve linebacker for the Patriots’ 2024 state championship team. He began his junior season starting at kicker and linebacker, and capped the year with a program-record 52-yard field goal in a 21-17 loss to eventual state champion Olentangy Orange in a Division I, Region 3 semifinal.
O’Morrow entered his senior season looking to earn a chance to kick in college, but a second medical scare involving his spine – and the subsequent diagnosis – ended his playing career.
“It was devastating for the kid,” Liberty coach John Sansbury said.
“It was something he was born with, and unfortunately, he’s not allowed to play contact sports. He’s extremely passionate about football and kicking and really good at it too. You hate to see that happen to anybody, especially to a guy with so much talent. You’re hurting for the kid because you want every kid to be able to play until they choose not to, and in this case that didn’t happen.”
O’Morrow did not know anything was wrong with his spine until last season, when an injury required an MRI. During a Week 4 home game against Olentangy Berlin, he was injured while making a tackle and lay motionless on the field for a few seconds, fearing he had sustained a life-changing injury.
“As soon as it happened, I went numb inside my body,” he said. “I thought I was paralyzed. I thought I would never be able to walk again, but then I slowly began to regain feeling in my arms and legs, and I was soon able to run off the field. At that point, I thought I was good.”
He was transported to Nationwide Children’s Hospital, and after having an MRI later at Ohio State was diagnosed with spinal stenosis, a congenital condition in which he was born with slightly narrower parts of his spinal canal.
It was determined he would no longer be able to play linebacker but could continue to kick after sitting out two games.
The second injury happened this season, again in Week 4 against Berlin. O’Morrow injured his neck while making a tackle on a kickoff return, resulting in a milder case of numbness and tingling compared to the first injury.
However, following another MRI, specialists determined he could no longer participate in contact sports.
“It didn’t kick in until that following week when we were at practice or that Friday night,” O’Morrow said. “I was on the sideline watching my backup kicker, Evan Fowler, go out there. It really didn’t hit initially, but then it slowly hit and I soon realized that I was done.”
O’Morrow has remained with the program, offering guidance to the kickers and linebackers. He was the first one from the sideline to celebrate with Fowler after his 25-yard field goal with 2 seconds remaining beat Upper Arlington 13-12 on Oct. 2.
The Patriots (5-3, 3-0 OCC-Central) have won five consecutive games entering an Oct. 16 home matchup with Hilliard Davidson.
“Football is a really important sport to me,” O’Morrow said. “It’s driven me all my life trying to get to college, but now that is out of the picture. I want to give everything back to this program, to my backup kickers and my linebackers as much as I can, so when I leave here that I leave it better than when I found it.”
O’Morrow is the second Liberty player this year to deal with a career-ending medical issue. Senior left tackle Ed Nichols stopped playing because of a pulmonary embolism suffered in March.
O’Morrow received interest from several colleges to kick, including Ohio State, Florida State, Tennessee, Vanderbilt and Miami University. He now plans to pursue a degree in business.
Pat O’Morrow kicked for three seasons at Ohio State, earning All-Big Ten recognition in 1988 after leading the Buckeyes in scoring with 77 points.
“To see it end like this is definitely disappointing, but to see what he’s done, it’s been fantastic,” Pat said of his son’s career. “He had potential to be better than I was and where I ended up. From a high school standpoint, he was definitely better than I was from a kicking side, from a fundamental side, from a distance side.”
Carson credits his dad for piquing his interest in kicking.
“As a little kid, going in the backyard, going out to the field in seventh, eighth grade, just trying to create a little foundational base,” Carson said. “Him kicking, he’s what got me started young. ... Sophomore year when I got on the field as a kickoff specialist and after winning the state title, I said I really want to do this, I plan on doing this in college.”
O’Morrow also previously played basketball at Liberty. He averaged 10.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists last season.
“He’s a fierce competitor with a high motor, a great defender with solid 3-point range,” coach Greg Nossaman said. “It will be tough to replace his intensity and his on-the-ball defense.”
High school sports reporter Frank DiRenna can be reached at fdirenna@dispatch.com and at @DispatchFrank on X.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Spine issue ends football career of Olentangy Liberty’s Carson O’Morrow
