Posted February 22nd, 2010 by Brian
Filed under: Basketball, Feature
The struggling Texas basketball team suffered a setback even in a win Saturday against Texas Tech. Early in the game starting point guard Dogus Balbay went down in a non-contact injury and Monday we learned the junior from Turkey had torn the ACL in his left knee. He will at least miss the rest of the season.
From the Statesman…
“I think it just buckled on him,” coach Rick Barnes said. “As soon as he went down, he knew.”
Balbay, a junior who started 22 of the Longhorn’ 27 games, led the team with 3.9 assists a game. He had a 2.5-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. He was also the Longhorns’ best defender.
“We’re gonna miss Dogus’ toughness,” Barnes said. “We’re gonna miss his defense.”
With Balbay done, the Horns will need a guard to step up from among the trio of JCovan Brown, Jai Lucas, and Justin Mason. A week ago Brown would have been the overwhelming favorite to nab Balbay’s minutes, but after starting two straight games the freshman only played 5 minutes against Tech. Hopefully someone steps up on both ends of the court or the free fall will continue.
Antwan Cobb was a lead blocker on many of Texas' 2009 short yardage touchdowns. (Image: Zimbio)
With National Signing Day and the important junior days, February is usually a time when Texas football fans can focus on recruiting and the beginnings of future Longhorn football careers. This weekend, however, the University announced that two current Longhorns were giving up the football careers and focusing on their academics. Wide receiver Philip Payne and running back Antwan Cobb have both decided to forgo their final year of eligibility and will focus on getting healthy and getting their UT degrees.
WR Philip Payne out of Garland will spend this semester working towards his communications degree:
“It was a very tough decision, but after discussing things with my family, we decided that I’m going to focus all my energy on my school work so I can finish my degree this spring. I’ve enjoyed every minute of my time with the football program and I’m looking forward to the next phase of my life. I’ll miss being around the guys and I can’t say enough about everyone in the program and how much I appreciate everything they did for me. I’m so happy to have been a part of the program, from the football family, to The University and our fans and supporters, it has been the experience of a lifetime. I’ll always be a Longhorn and I’ll be pulling for the team to have another great year in 2010.”
Fullback and special teams standout Cobb’s knee injuries had added up:
“Since my knee injury a couple of years ago, I’ve had a series of injuries and just haven’t been able to get well enough to compete at the level I know I’m capable of. I talked to my family and the coaches and think it’s in my best interest to move on and focus on finishing my degree and getting ready for life after football. It was a tough decision and I’m very appreciative of everything the coaches and staff did to help me through the process. I’ve had a great experience here and learned so many valuable lessons on and off the field that will help me for the rest of my life. I’ll miss not being out there with my teammates every day but will be around and helping any way I can. I’ll always be a part of this family and pulling for my Longhorns.”
Good luck to both young men as they pursue their degrees and finish out their careers as Texas Longhorns.
Texas quarterback Colt McCoy sits down with ESPN to talk about his shoulder injury, how he’s recovering from the mental aspect of missing the biggest game of his life, and his future in the NFL…
Posted November 26th, 2009 by Brian
Filed under: Basketball
It looked awkward but not too bad when it happened, but the pregame injury Texas guard Varez Ward suffered Tuesday night turned out to be season ending. He went down hard during layup drill sand had to be taken off the court on a stretcher and the university announced Wednesday that Ward has ruptured his quadriceps tendon.
From the university:
Statement from Athletic Trainer Eric Fry
MRI results showed that Varez Ward ruptured his right quadriceps tendon. He is scheduled to undergo surgery early next week and will miss the remainder of the season.Statement from Head Coach Rick Barnes
We all feel for Varez. Everyone within our program understands how much time and hard work Varez has put in, and he has been the most improved player on our team from the end of last season. He means a lot to this program. There is one thing for certain, he will be back.
Roddrick Muckelroy may not be on the field to harass the Baylor Bears this season.
After hurting his knee jumping to celebrate a big play last week, Texas linebacker Roddrick Muckelroy is listed as “probable” on this week’s official injury report for Baylor. Normally you’d think that would mean we’d almost certainly see Rod against the Bears tomorrow, but since it is Baylor it might mean a week of extra space for his tweaked knee. I expect to see him in uniform but not in the game unless it’s an emergency.
The two other names on this week’s report are more familiar as defensive tackle Calvin Howell remains out with his concussion and true freshman offensive lineman Mason Walters‘ foot is still keeping him out. Those two players are likely to seek a medical redshirt later in their time at Texas and possibly receive an extra year of eligibility.
Oklahoma State running back Kendall Hunter will be able to play against Texas this Saturday. He’s only played in two games so far this season and is still not 100%, but head coach Mike Gundy says he could get 8 - 10 touches during the game.
As was rumored last week, Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford announced today through a university release that he would be having season-ending shoulder surgery. If the surgery goes as planned Bradford intends to leave OU and enter the 2010 NFL Draft.
Bad news on the injury front. As was rumored over the weekend, Texas linebacker Jared Norton needs season-ending surgery on his shoulder and is done for the year. Read the official university release below:
After further evaluation of the right shoulder injury that Longhorn senior linebacker Jared Norton sustained in UT’s season-opening victory over ULM, it was determined that he will need to have season ending surgery, Texas Head Athletic Trainer for Football Kenny Boyd said on Monday.
Norton, who registered six tackles against ULM, will apply for a medical redshirt year in hopes of returning for the 2010 season. The 6-foot-3, 237-pounder has played in 38 career games, starting nine, and posted 128 tackles, 4.5 sacks and nine tackles for loss.
He started seven of 13 games and had 54 tackles, 2.5 sacks and four TFL last year and played in 12 games, starting one, with 53 tackles, two sacks and four TFL as a sophomore in 2007. As a true freshman in 2006, Norton played in 12 games and registered 15 stops and one TFL.
“It’s disappointing not being out there with my teammates especially with this being my senior year,” Norton said. “I’ve been through this process before, so I know how to deal with it.
“I’m just going to work hard rehabbing and focus on my schoolwork and getting my degree. Hopefully, the rehab will go well and I can come back next year and help lead the team to another
successful season.”
Good luck to Jared in his recovery.
The Longhorns will be near full strength when they take the field for an early start to Big 12 conference play. Only two players are listed as out on the official injury report for the game Saturday night against Texas Tech. Linebacker Jared Norton is out with a shoulder injury and freshman offensive lineman Mason Walters will miss the game due to a foot injury.
Both players were injured in the season opener and also missed last week’s game against Wyoming. Norton’s shoulder was originally reported as not being serious but he’s now missed two games and his status is one to keep an eye on.
The biggest news may be one name not on the list, tailback Foswhitt Whittaker is listed on the depth chart and will finally make his debut against the Red Raiders. Good luck to Fozzy, hopefully he finally stays healthy enough to get his chance.
Jared Norton reinjured his shoulder against ULM.
Just one week into the season and the Horns’ official injury list is already getting a little long, and there’s a familiar name on it that fans were hoping would be a big contributor this year. Four players didn’t make the trip to Wyoming due to various injuries.
Running back Fozzy Whittaker is out again this week with a knee injury. Also out are offensive guards Michael Huey with a left ankle sprain and true freshman Mason Walters with a foot injury. Linebacker Jared Norton has a right shoulder injury that reportedly isn’t too serious, but it’s bad enough that he’s out for this week’s game.
The offensive line depth is definitely hurting. When the season started the coaches had five starters and David Snow backing them up and now one of the starters is out and another backup is down. Tray Allen was working almost exclusively at defensive tackle last week and this week he’s the number two guy at both left guard and tackle.
Hopefully the line and everyone else can stay healthy this week in possibly snowy Wyoming.
Bad news on the injury front as news is breaking that tight end DJ Grant’s knee injury suffered last night is serious and will sideline him for the entire 2009 season. A source close to Grant’s family told BON, “Out for the year. Lots of tears. No breaks.”
Terrible luck for the kid and of course for the tight end depth chart. We wish him a full and speedy recovery.
Update: It’s official, he’s out for the year due to “damage to multiple ligaments in his left knee.” Quotes from Mack below:
“We’re disappointed for D.J.,” said Mack Brown. “He’s worked really hard and was ready to compete for playing time this season. We’ll miss having him out on the field but we will be there to support him throughout his rehab. Fortunately we’ll still have him around learning the position and helping the team at practices and meetings. He’s a great kid and we know he’ll get healthy, work hard in his rehabilitation and has a bright future.”
Texas Longhorns tight end Blaine Irby will miss the entire 2009 season.
The Texas training staff gave everyone some bad news yesterday when they announced that tight end Blaine Irby would miss the entire 2009 season due to the devastating knee injury he suffered last season. According to his surgeon, Irby recovered from ligament damage well but his nerve damage was severe and has resulted in drop foot. The condition is serious and sometimes permanent.
Irby comments on his injury and rehab below:
“First and foremost, I want to thank all of my teammates, coaches and family because a big thing this injury has taught me is how much support we have here,” Irby said. “That support has helped in the rehab process and will continue to drive me to get back on the field.
“The injury has taught me a lot of things like patience. It was devastating at first, but I’ve come a long way. I realize this is an obstacle I have to overcome and it’s going to take time. I feel like I’ve made the best of the situation and am working to make sure something positive comes out of this.
“I’m disappointed that I’m going to miss the season, but that’s not going to stop me from having an impact on this team. I’m going to help the coaches in any way I can and work with the tight ends, whether it’s watching film, or just trying to be a resource for them. I’m really going to work with the young guys to try and get them ready to help the team.”
We wish Blaine the best in his continued rehab and recovery.
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