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Teams Sidetracked by Injuries....


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I had this conversation with some Linton friends.. thought it might make for conversation amongst some of us.   I suppose every team has had this happen-  Where you feel you have a team that can make noise in post-season, then the unthinkable happens.  You lose your best player or players.. or several key guys.  The team you field in the biggest game of the year are not the team you played most the year with.  I know it happens at all levels, but I feel the smaller schools truly suffer if/when the injury bug hits.  And if it hits late in the season it can devastate a deep run in a lot of cases.  In my time in the booth for Linton...I can think of at least a couple occasions where we had so many key guys in street clothes or nowhere near 100% at big games.  Now..I realize by that time of the season...very few teams are at 100%, and a lot of guys play hurt.   What team at your school falls into the category of shoulda coulda gone further than they did had it not been hampered by the loss of players to injury? 

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Girls and ACLs when I was at Jasper and Vincennes Rivet.  I know that's not a team, but I have seen a lot of girls with season ending injuries and some of them were multiple ACLs i.e. 2016-2017 and 2017-2018.

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One that comes to mind for me at Linton was 2013 semi-state against a great Eastern Hancock. They came in 13-0 and had 2500+ rusher Gilbert, LB's Delph, Riley and Knopp (as well as Gilbert) and Mr. Everything Henderson.  We had lost our QB, who really was a FB, Rupska in a win over Sheridan. He sat out the next 3 games, and came back against PC in Sectional 40 Championship...but played little.  the next week against Fountain Central and EH, he played his normal ILB, and lined up at TE.  Eaton moved in from WR to play QB.. which was his natural position.  He just didn't have many varsity reps. He did throw for 942 yard though. 821 of that post-Rupska injury in 6 games. 

 

Problem was...Perhaps our best athlete was at WR in Grant Stamm...who today holds most of Linton's receiving marks.  He wasn't going to play his senior year... to concentrate on track...where he had scholarships to Purdue, ISU etc in the offering. But he didn't want to let his friends down..and he missed it.   He didn't have 6'8" Austin Karazsia at QB having graduated the year prior.  12 of his 31 catches were TDs despite being double covered.  Late in the Sect Semi Final, he was the long snapper on the punt team... and while making a tackle, suffered a gruesome ankle break.  It was a horrible sight.. .but the good news is that he still went back to state in the Spring with the Miners in hurdles, and did end up with a scholarship post-graduation.

His injury, combined with Eaton moving to QB.. left us without the slightest threat with any down field passing.  Soph Jacob Clothier came in, and started what was a 3 year year career at SE.  He caught a huge 30 yard pass in a key moment against the Mustangs in regional..and caught 6 against the Royals.  But EH could stack the line all night...and our athletes were all in the wing back slots, and the Royals did a tremendous job of prohibiting their ability to get open.  

We were also without starting LB and TE Trent Vowell, and OT Indiana Miller from the prior week.  Miller tried to go but couldn't.  I don't know that having a healthy Dane Rupska at QB...and having Stamm back out at Wideout with Eaton on the other side would have made a difference in the outcome of the game... but I think it would have been a battle!!! 

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It happens and its tough to over come, especially in the smaller classes.  I feel when Pioneer lost Starting RB and LB due to a broken leg during Semi-State that it cost them the 2016 State Championship, Not taking anything away from Linton as that was by far the best team PHS had seen with or without 24. When you play 14 games with a game plan and 24 is a key part of your attack and also helps anchor you defense,  and then all of a sudden you have a week to adjust and  you only have 34 high school boys 9-12 to figure out who will be able to replace a 1500 yard rusher and leader on defense the  point is you dont have an option or they would have been there in the first place, its a major drop off heading into the ultimate team goal and biggest stage in HS football. 

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When Avon's Sampson James was injured in the 2nd game of the season, he sat out a couple of games then played the rest of the season, but was just a shadow of himself.  No lateral movement and a loss of what was blinding speed.  It changed Avon from a semistate contender to an average team.

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A few years ago Gibson Southern lost their QB in week 9 to a broken collarbone fighting (and succeeding) to win the conference championship game.....I think the following week we faced Evansville memorial in the first round and lost by a touchdown.  i think this was 2016

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4 minutes ago, Tanka Jahari said:

All teams deal with injuries at some point and very few are 100% when it comes time for the playoffs. What is worse is when a team still had the talent to win the game but your coach was once again outcoached. I hope it makes people feel better though to blame the loss on an injury.

If a team is going to hang their hat on something they should at least be competent at doing that thing. What good is an identity if you still suck at it?

 

Says the person who has a picture of a man putting on lip-stick.  LOL. 

I am just joking.  I have no idea if you are or not.  I just saw the blazing irony and had to take this opportunity.  

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3 minutes ago, Tanka Jahari said:

I am Tanka Jahari. But I would NEVER order a whole pizza for myself.

Had to look up who Tanka Jahari was.

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1999 Heritage Hills lost top receiver Symon Jochim  in week 1, lost top 2 running backs Goldsberry and Kress in 2nd round of sectional and to make things worse the player that replaced the receiver got himself suspended for championship game.

We were left  with QB Cutler and our fullback as the only skill players available for championship game.

Many in Patriot country thought Freshman Cole Seifrig should have started on offense that game but it didn't happen.

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On 5/22/2019 at 1:47 PM, Staxawax said:

When Avon's Sampson James was injured in the 2nd game of the season, he sat out a couple of games then played the rest of the season, but was just a shadow of himself.  No lateral movement and a loss of what was blinding speed.  It changed Avon from a semistate contender to an average team.

So, is IU getting damaged goods??

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On 5/25/2019 at 7:44 AM, psaboy said:

So, is IU getting damaged goods??

Well, he decommittted from OSU after being injured. IU knew what they were getting.  I have no knowledge whatsoever but I assume the injury was repaired by surgery or time. If they redshirt him that will probably tell you something.

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On 5/26/2019 at 10:54 AM, Staxawax said:

Well, he decommittted from OSU after being injured. IU knew what they were getting.  I have no knowledge whatsoever but I assume the injury was repaired by surgery or time. If they redshirt him that will probably tell you something.

Hopefully good surgeon and rehab, time will tell.

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