DATE: Friday, October 31, 1997              TAG: 9710310847

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C4   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY JIM DUCIBELLA, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   84 lines

CARTER SAYS HE'S LOOKING FORWARD TO BUMPING INTO SOME OLD PALS

Last summer, Tom Carter went home.

On Sunday, he'll see his family again.

Carter, a former Notre Dame star who played four seasons for the Washington Redskins, signed a multiyear, $13.8 million contract with the Chicago Bears during the offseason. Sunday at Soldier Field, he faces the team that drafted him in the first round and trained him for a stardom he has yet to achieve.

``There are no mixed feelings about it,'' Carter said earlier this week. ``It's going to be fun seeing the guys who have been my family over four years' time. Once I get it into my head that this is not a practice, that's it's a real game, I will be fine. But I'm looking forward to it.''

Carter should be matched up with Washington's leading wideout, Leslie Shepherd, continuing a personal battle that has followed the two even before Shepherd made the Redskins' roster.

``I was just thinking about that earlier today,'' Carter said. ``When he was in Pittsburgh, we'd scrimmage against each other during the summer. And then in Washington, me and Leslie had so many plays against each other on the practice field.

``I look forward to seeing him again. We know it's all business; I know his game, he knows my game. There isn't anything to do but go out and compete to the utmost. If there's anyone in the league whose physical ability I have respect for, it's Leslie.''

The Redskins thought so highly of Carter after his rookie season that they named him one of their transition players, meaning he was entitled to the average salary of the league's 10 highest-paid cornerbacks.

They soured on him a little last season, thinking he was better suited for zone defense than the man-to-man schemes new defensive coordinator Mike Nolan favored. But they wouldn't remove the transition tag. When the Bears came up with their five-year proposal worth nearly $14 million, the Redskins let Carter go rather than match it and keep him.

``We would have preferred to stay in D.C.,'' Carter said, referring to his wife and baby boy. ``Some things were no left in my control. We were very comfortable in D.C. We could have stayed there forever.

``The money wasn't that important. My wife and I wanted to be at peace in our lives. We prayed on our decision a lot, and the more we prayed, the more it seemed we were drawn to Chicago.''

And Chicago has proven to be a suitable alternative for Carter. There's the proximity to Notre Dame. Then, there's Bears coach Dave Wannstedt. He and Redskins coach Norv Turner worked together at Southern Cal and with the Dallas Cowboys. Their styles are similar.

``It's been an easy transition,'' Carter said. ``It's the same format as we used in Washington. Even the practice schedules are the same.''

Wannstedt doesn't share Washington's belief that Carter is better suited to zone play. The Bears have played him tight and man-to-man on the best receivers they've faced this season. Wannstedt says Carter has met the challenge.

``We expect a lot of him,'' Wannstedt said. ``He's played a lot of pressure stuff and he's done everything we've asked. We expect him to come up with turnovers, and I'd like to see Tom come up with more big plays, but I'd like that for every player on our defense. He's playing well and has been a good influence on our team.''

Carter replaced the popular Donnell Woolford, who had made salary demands similar to those Carter was making. Trying to defuse any potential animosity, Carter has been a model of hard work and good behavior. He was the award-winner among defensive backs for the team's offseason strength and conditioning program. He's gone full tilt in every practice.

``Darrell Green taught me that you have to have intensity every play,'' Carter said. ``Whether he stressed it or not, you saw it in him. He had it in practice and it carried over into the games. That's what I'm trying to do here, spread the message about what it takes.''

NOTES: Redskins quarterback Gus Frerotte and his wife, Ann, are parents to a baby boy, Gustave Gunnar, who weighed in Wednesday night at slightly more than 9 pounds. Mother and son are doing fine. . . . Turner says he is considering starting Alvin Harper at receiver Sunday in place of Henry Ellard, who dropped two critical passes in the 20-17 loss to Baltimore. A decision won't be made until Friday, at the earliest. . . . WJLA-TV in Washington is reporting that the Redskins are interested in signing defensive tackle Chris Zorich, a seven-year veteran who missed the '96 season with a knee injury. The Bears released Zorich on Tuesday. ILLUSTRATION: Photo

HUY NGUYEN/File photo

Cornerback Tom Carter, right, who leads the Bears in passes defensed

with 11, joined Chicago in the offseason after four years with

Washington.

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