South Fayette lineman growing into potential
At 6-feet-5, 196 pounds and only 17 years old, Anthony Charles has room for growth.
After his senior season of football at South Fayette High School this autumn and four more years playing at the University of Minnesota, Charles may very well be ready to pursue his boyhood aspiration.
“Playing in the NFL has been my dream since I was a kid. Nothing compares to that experience of playing the game at the highest level,” Charles said. “It’s the hardest thing I’m going to do in my life but I am willing to put the work into it.”
Lions coach Marty Spieler expects nothing less. He notes that Charles has all the tools and dimensions.
“He’s long and lean. Extremely explosive,” Spieler said. “He can cause havoc. There’s a large growth process that takes place from high school and in college but Anthony has the potential.”
Charles has the genes, too. His mother, Latae, played basketball at Marshall University. A Cleveland native, his father, Antonio, played football at Youngstown State. While his older brother, Michael, could have played Division I football, he opted to pursue studies in cybersecurity at Penn State. His younger siblings, Trindon and Kingston, are both football players, while his sister, Aniyah, is an eighth grader who excels in basketball as well as volleyball.
“My parents and my family have been the most influential people in my life,” Charles said. “While I did play basketball a little bit because I was always tall, I loved football a lot more.”
As a freshman, Charles started taking football seriously.
Because his mother wanted him to attend a private school, Charles played at Bishop Canevin High School for two years. He transferred to South Fayette, growing into a dominant edge rusher. As a junior last year, he had 28 tackles, six sacks and two forced fumbles.
“It was a good transfer,” Charles said. “When I got here, I weighed about 175. I gained about 30 to 40 pounds.
Charles noted it wasn’t easy moving to a new school let alone a new football program, one that competed at the Class 5A level instead of 1A.
“For me personally, it was hard. When I first got here, I didn’t know the team and how to work with the team. I was anxious and nervous because I didn’t know anybody.,” he said.
“Over time this team became like a family to me. They all got my back. They really embraced me and were hospitable. Now they are all my brothers and I love them all.”
The feeling is mutual. With a season under his belt, Charles is expected to play a crucial role in South Fayette’s success this autumn.
“Anthony is a great kid. Well-liked in the locker room,” Spieler said. “We expect him to be a leader. Our expectations for him as our entire defensive line is to be disruptive and do their best to put our defense in the best position.
“Anthony sets the edge. He really gets off the line with a lot of speed and acceleration. He’s got a really good pass rush and can be a splash play difference-maker.”
Those qualities made Charles a hot commodity in collegiate circles. Rivals.com rated him a three-star recruit and Big Ten schools like Penn State, Michigan, Michigan State and Wisconsin, along with West Virginia, Cincinnati and Syracuse, came courting.
Charles, however, accepted a scholarship offer from Minnesota, which went 8-5 in 2024 and defeated Virginia Tech, 24-10, in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl in Charlotte, N.C.
“When I made my official visit, I fell in love with Minnesota. I loved the hospitality,” he said. “It felt like family. After my conversations with the coaches, I knew this was where I wanted to be.”
Charles, who will major in psychology, felt the Gophers could facilitate his future objectives.
“My goals are similar to what they are now. Contribute and get to the NFL,” Charles said.
Minnesota will help Charles attain those aspirations there because he says that he is going to get bigger, stronger, faster. “I am going to develop as much as I can. That appealed to me.”
This fall, helping turn the Lions into a champion matters to Charles. South Fayette finished 1-4 in the conference and 6-5 overall in 2024.
“I want the team to go as far as possible – get to states,” he said. “Personally, I want to contribute as much as I can and be the best player that I can be. Because I know my position well and can be physical and get off the line very fast and because we have a lot of chemistry, our team can go places. I feel you can go anywhere as long as you put the work in.”
From now until he realizes his ultimate goal, Charles labors on. He even sloughed off a broken thumb incurred during the Aaron Donald Camp this summer and plugged away at his training.
“Getting through adversity and hard times is a life lesson that sports teaches you,” he said. “I’m not half of what I am now since I started taking football seriously. Coaches felt I could. They saw my potential. It wasn’t just them, it was also my parents, family, friends and myself that instilled in me that I can go wherever I want. If I can reach my potential, I can do anything.”
Anthony Charles
Bio box
Age: 17
Birthdate: April 24
Parents: Antonio and Latae
Siblings: Michael, Trindon, Kingston, Aniyah
School: South Fayette
Year: Senior
GPA: 3.45
Sports: Football, track
College choice: Minnesota.
Major: Psychology
Food: Buffalo chicken wings
Restaurant: Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers
Book: Lord of the Flies
Color: Purple
Music and artist: Hip Hop. Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole
Favorite athlete: Myles Garrett.
People might be surprised to know this about you: I know how to play the piano.
If you could have dinner with anybody, dead or alive, who would it be:
Jesus. “That would be a surreal experience.”