SMU LB on the mend after surgery

[PonyPride]

While many of the Mustangs chugged up and down the hill at the south end of Ford Stadium Friday afternoon, linebacker Kevin Pope stood in the shade of the tunnel at the north end of the field.

It would have been understandable if Pope had expressed some measure of gratitude to be escaping the hard work his teammates were putting in under the blazing afternoon sun. Instead, Pope looked left out. To be accurate, he felt lucky to be standing.

Any concerns that Pope was trying to get out of the work needed to prepare for his senior season are unfounded.

A week earlier, while at home in Mount Enterprise, Texas, Pope went for his regular run to improve his conditioning level in anticipation of the Mustangs' preseason workouts that begin next month.

"I went out for a run in the evening, like I always do," Pope said. "Next thing I know, there are seven or eight pit bulls chasing me."

Pope accelerated into a sprint and did not look back.

"I tried to make it back to the house, but they were gaining on me," Pope said, "so I jumped into a tree."

Pope climbed on to a branch several feet off the ground, with the dogs waiting down below.

"They tried to climb the tree, but they couldn't," Pope said. "I wasn't getting down — I would have stayed in that tree overnight if I had to."

Only after the dogs had left and were out of sight — he estimated he was in the tree for 15-20 minutes — Pope climbed down and went home, at which point he realized he had blood running down his leg. The dogs had failed to catch him, but in his hustle to escape the dogs, a branch of the tree punctured the back of his thigh, digging about three inches in.

"I had surgery, but I was lucky," Pope said. "The doctors said the branch didn't tear the muscle — it went between muscles, so it could have been worse. It took six stitches to close it up."

Pope filed a report with the police. Because the dogs did not actually bite Pope, the police told the dogs' owner to make sure to keep them locked up.

Pope said he is now free of any pain and is not limited in his movement. He expects to resume working out with his teammates Monday, and expects to take part in all running, conditioning and seven-on-seven drills.

[ALEX LIFESON]

Only at SMU! ha ha

[giacfsp]

So glad Pope is OK!

[mrydel]

Wow. We could have been waiting for white smoke to see who had named to the position of Pope.

[ponyboy]

That really ticks me off, people who let their dogs run free like that. Glad Pope is ok

[that's great raplh]

Is this for real

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

holy crap

[Junior]

holy crap

That's what I was thinking.

[ponyboy]

Wow. We could have been waiting for white smoke to see who had named to the position of Pope.

Have you been saving that one?

[PonyPride]

Is this for real

Yes, it's real. He was in good spirits when he told me about it, though, and he clearly is eager to get back out there with his teammates this week.

[Mustangsabu]

That could only happen to an SMU player. Hope he gets better fast, I have high hopes for him.

[Lefty]

He and Joyner are the anchors in the middle of our defense. Get healthy, Kevin!

[JoeKidd]

Glad Pope is okay. Pit bulls are the most worthless dogs in the world and this is just another reason why they should all be put down.

[PonyPower]

Wrong. When raised right, they are beautiful, family-friendly, loving dogs. Sadly that doesn't seem to be the case here. I'm just glad Pope can run!

[ojaipony]

Scary. Glad he's ok.

Note to Kevin: don't jog in your hood. Come to SMU and run at our wonderful facilities without fear of any pit bulls.

Although that's a pretty good training tactic: unleash the pit bulls. If you can out run them, you make the team. I would expect our linebackers, though, to turn and whip those pitbulls' asses. We need our linebackers to be BAAAD men.