PonyFans.com

I was thinking about the talk on this board about the need for an improved pass rush, and I started thinking about Lucky DeLay. He blew out his Achilles' tendon the week he was supposed to get in the starting lineup (Nevada, I think), so the coaches must have seen something significant to have made the decision to burn his redshirt year. So (you knew there was a point to this, right?), how long does it take to get over such an injury? Can we assume he'll take part in spring practice or 2-a-days? Or will it take another full year to heal fully?

Speaking from personal experience, the rehab is very difficult, and painful. I would not look for him to contribute much next year.

I had a completely severed achilles tendon in 1985 and today still have loss of flexibilty and noted stiffness. Granted, my "athletic" condition is not that of a college player, but it can be a devastating injury. A lot just depends on the severity of the injury itself, was it a strain, partial tear, or completely torn. Also, the time between injury and surgery can make a difference. The sooner the better. Some athletes have recovered fully, but my guess would be more are never quite the same as there are those that recover.

My total recovery time, even with the stiffness was right at one year.

With that "expert" opinion, maybe Dr. Ponyte can weigh in with some better info.

<small>[ 12-18-2003, 05:31 AM: Message edited by: mrydel ]</small>

Depends on how 'blown' out it was...a complete rupture vs strained tendon.

If he were a 4.4 sprinter, he'd probably only come back at 4.6-7 with a complete rupture. Not a good injury to have.

I have no idea based upon his position whether it is as detrimental or not to his performance in the future...but, he's 18 and YOUNG so he has a better chance than a 28 year old DB in the NFL (what happened to Jason Sehorn?).

I would think that playing DE makes his Achilles vital to his success. He has to burst off the line of scrimmage, either to get around the OT or to plow into the OT and TE while playing the run. Man, I hope it wasn't a complete blowout.

I completely blew out my left achilles and it took a year. It is a very difficult injury to come back from, but athletes can do it. Derrick McKey did it in basketball and Marino did it in football and Donovan Bailey did it in track. You do lose some explosion, but with a lot of hard work he could make it back on the field.

I had heard he had much better promise as a DT..

Originally posted by BigEasyPony:
I completely blew out my left achilles and it took a year. It is a very difficult injury to come back from, but athletes can do it. Derrick McKey did it in basketball and Marino did it in football and Donovan Bailey did it in track. You do lose some explosion, but with a lot of hard work he could make it back on the field.

I'm not sure you can use Marino as an example, because he was slower than a dead guy before his injury. But McKey and especially Bailey are very encouraging examples.

Get better, Lucky.