Confidence is temporarily weakened with injuries in general. Questions of “Will they play the same?” or “ Is that the last we’ve seen?” come to mind, and they irritate the athletes with the doubt being spewed. La Salle’s fallen soldiers are different though, and after injuries that leave most cringing and wincing, they work to heal and get back to their team soon. Sitting on the bench gives them time to get hungry and recover smoothly. Everyone is different of course, but when your eye meets theirs, you know next season will be greater than the last.

“I’ll go to the school during the breaks and just work out. They haven’t seen nothing yet,” saidd sophomore linebacker Charquez Lee.

Ms. Camille Wilkerson deserves praise for the efficient recovery athletes like Lee have shown, and even improved from before the injury. She sets up drills for the athletes to perform and exercises to regain muscle memory in the injured athlete. Some of these athletes have been just sitting in the ILS Student Learning Center for weeks or months, and Ms. Wilkerson gets them back on track.

“Leg strengthening, and a lot of mobility activities to get my ankle back to working, and making sure my Achilles gets back stronger,” said senior running back Jarrod Carr.

Carr and James Brill (senior wide receiver) have shown to be nothing short of dominant in their team, and they both injured their fibula. Both of them could relate to one another despite it being at different times, and their team had to use new rotations when they lost these two leaders. This understanding of one another could help build the other up and get through the minor taxes the game has tolled.

No matter how beat up these young men may feel, they get to work to get back to the game. With every struggle they’ve endured, they know colleges should give them a chance to show what they’re made of. Football is second nature to them and they’re just working with Ms. Wilkerson and other physical therapists to get back into their cleats.

“No, I just had a drive to finish my season…Give me a chance because I always put 110% and I’m always on top of everyone,” assured senior Carlos Gomez.

Physical therapy for some of these athletes took a long time as well, and only once it is experienced can anyone truly understand the tedious work that they have to put in. It’s all right, though, because these players have each other’s back through the tough times, and they go through it as one unit.

“There was a moment in time where I really wasn’t doing stuff. It is hard–it is; you lose a lot of motivation, and you’re isolated,” stated Brill.

Fans know who they really are as well. Opportunities shouldn’t be taken away because of injuries, and if you ask any fan, they’ll assure how these are just temporary flaws to something that’s much bigger than just a football and a field.

“Don’t give up on them because of an injury. You have seen what they’re capable of before that, and they’ll come back better,” said sophomore Lucia Gonzalez