2 Practice Days and Counting.

Today was the last Monday of spring training for us.  We had a lot of stuff packed into today's practice, and the kids responded well.   I guess we can expect more of the same tomorrow as well.  The defensive kids playing offense puts us at a whole different level.  We should be able to compete with the athletes of Treasure Coast High School.  Overall, we are healthy going into Thursday nights game.  But then again, coaches may not be the best judge of the severity of injuries. 

To me, the general rule of thumb is:  "If the bone is not sticking out, then you are not really hurt too bad."  I am joking of course....sort of! LOL.  This theory probably cost my son Mike his career.  Mike was a young skinny 9th grade QB playing for Coach Smith on the JV team.  Mike was the son of a QB coach (me) and we could always depend on Mike to lead the team.  Smitty would ask Mike to call his own plays at the line of scrimmage, because he trusted Mikes judgement on what he was seeing at the moment.  Defenses will often show one defensive front, and then quickly shift into another defense front before the snap.  Mike had a young QB's ability to change to a more appropriate play for the situation.  Mike and I worked out a simple audible system to communicate with the other players.  I was always afraid to use it, but Smitty loved it. 

We were playing Okeechobee on the road.  We were up by two touchdowns on a very talented JV team.  Mike had burned their ass with two TD Passes to Dennis Jefferson on deep play-action routes.  Mike may not have been the quickest dude in the world, but he was excellent with the fundamentals of play-action, and fakes.  Anyway, I called a QB roll out and a combo route with the two receivers.  The blocking collapsed and Mike was sacked.  He was the last to get up and he ran off the field.......straight to the bench.  Luckily, we punted and went on defense before the half ended.  Mike said: "Dad, I am hurt!" 

I knew something was very wrong.  Mike had / has a very high tolerance for pain.  I always taught Mike to NEVER lay his butt on the field.  Somehow, someway get off the field under his own power.  NEVER let the defense see you hurt.  I have seen Mike come running off the field with his breath completely knocked out of him.  I have seen his mouth bloodied from taking a shot.  Mike never laid  down....ever.  I was trying to teach him to be a tough leader.

I asked Mike what was wrong?  He said: "Dad, my ankle turned over, and it's bad.  It's going numb."  I asked the infamous question: "Can you go?" Mike said:  "Tape it up Dad!" (I am not too proud of this next part)  I tightly taped his shoe to the lower part of his leg.  I just kept wrapping and wrapping until the ankle was completely immobilized.  Smitty asked: "Is he OK?  Can he play?"  I said Mike was ready to go, and Smitty decided to put him in the game.  Mike started and played the entire second half.  In fact, he threw a third TD pass and we won the game. 

After the game, I cut off the tape.  The ankle swelled and turned purple and black.  We iced it down overnight. The next day (Friday) he could barely walk.  Jerry (the trainer) said it did not look good.  We kept up the ice treatment all weekend.  On Monday, it was no better at all; in fact, it looked worse.  Marty (my girlfriend) worked for an Orthopedic office, and she kept saying to me: "There is something wrong, he is really hurt bad."  Long story short:  Mike had ripped all the ligaments completely off his ankle, and major reconstruction was necessary to stabilize the ankle.  It was a nasty injury.  Dr Cain performed the surgery.  He was a military surgeon who used to operate on the British Airborne Soldiers who injured their ankles jumping from airplanes.  Old school all the way, and a master at his craft.  He took ligaments from one another part of Mike's foot, and transplanted them into his ankle, and screwed this and pinned that and sewed it all up. 

Truthfully, the ankle was never the same after the first injury. In fact, the same ankle was again injured during his senior year, and a radical new surgery was needed to repair the damage.  We were warned: The ankle could not be repaired again. The next step would be ankle fusion, and he would never walk the same again. 

The doctors said that Mike did not do anymore damage to the ankle by playing on it further.  They were just surprised that he could stand the pain involved while doing so.  I will never forget what Mike said to Dr. Cain:  "The pain was not too bad if I kept moving!"  LOL.  I  am much more careful with my players today.  Our trainer is excellent, and I trust her judgement completely.  Besides, Mike turned out just fine!!