Personal Narrative: Football Injury

I was excited for a new beginning in my career, maybe to prepare me for high school in the upcoming years. The idea of beating boys in soccer got me excited, my blood pumping harder through my veins and put an extra spring in my step. It was the first practice of our middle school season, where my life would be turned upside down. I ran down the field as normal, going for another shot on goal, but out of nowhere one of boys came from behind and completely took out my knee, causing me to collapse in pain. Lying down on the field, my sanctuary, the place I saw as home was probably the most grueling time of my life. Injuries were common in my life, but this injury was unlike any other. I could not get up off the field and felt as if there was nothing left in my knee, and every time I tried to get up, I fell right back down. I never sat out a practice until that night and figured one day would be enough. One night was clearly not enough, I was never able to catch back up to my full speed, or be able to cut around the field, which resulted in moving positions from forward, to defense to cut back on the running. I thought this would a temporary position, but I played every game in

I was nine-years old in 1952, and it was on a brisk August Sunday afternoon when my Dad took me to my very first 49ers game at Kezar Stadium for an exhibition contest against the Cardinals, from Chicago. As I remember the weather was overcast and the temperature a cool 60 degrees.

Sports has always been a huge part of my life. I would be the one team player who took the sports season a little bit too seriously. I was the number 1 doubles player on my school's JV tennis team. Unfortunately, I fractured my ankle during my junior year and wasn't able to play with my team. I was devastated, but I didn’t allow myself to become disconnected from my team. I became the team manager to allow myself to still play a role in my team, despite my injury. I would record scores to my division leaders and take pictures to post on the website I created for my team. After the season was over, my doctor told me my ankles required surgery to become fully healed. I knew that meant I couldn’t continue to play tennis, but I didn’t want to give

This all begun in 2014, i was recovering from my first ACL tear. I would talk to my doctor about how my recovery was going so far, and he would always reply “your coming along well” but what he never told me was he was expecting it to tere again at any moment.

September 20, 2011 was the day that everything changed. Practice that day was long and excruciatingly hot. My coach did not let me take a rest as I was the only full back we had at the time. Hit after hit, it started to add up and my world was spinning but coach told me to keep going, so I did. The very next snap my world got wrecked. My form became lazy because I was beyond exhausted and dehydrated, my head lead my attempt to break the tackle and the kid making the tackle lead with his head as well. Just like that my body went numb, everything was dark, my eyes were open but I could not see. I had no sense of where I was and where I was going. My name left me. At this point I did not know if I was dead or alive. This was the last time I was ever able to strap up and play the game of football. This is what happens to the millions of kids who play football on a daily basis. Somebody was there telling them to go back in even when they were showing early signs of a concussion. The athlete takes one more hit straight to the head out of poor form or exhaustion and then everything goes from bad to worse. These events take place at such a young age that the long term side effects can be fatal.

Final minutes of the first half winding down, my team was marching down the field with a purpose. Across the gridiron was our rival team, Mayfield, who we had beat the previous year in the state championship game. It was a cold November night and the stage was set, playing on their home field, “The Field of Dreams,” in Las Cruses, New Mexico in the semi-finals of the state tournament. Up 14-0, we had the ball and were trying to score before going into halftime. I was handed the ball for a running play and then it happened. Falling to the ground as if I had been shot, I had completely torn my hamstring. I was in complete shock as I lay on the ground. As the pain

I was in my second to last game of the season playing against our rival. Throughout all my years of sports, which has been about 8-10 years. I got the hand off and started running the ball and I had open ground out of the corner of my eye I got smashed from the side by an opponent. I went down hard to the ground and I blacked out for a couple seconds. I couldn’t even stand or walk on my own for a little while I was so dizzy. When I got up and could finally see I could walk, I was taking the trainer, but if I looked at the sun it would hurt.

When Jacob, the best player of my football team when I was ten, got hurt, it turned out to be a ‘’blessing in disguise.’’ At the time I was ten and played for the Modesto Raiders. It was our third game of the season, and we were playing the Vikings on a warm, windy day. When Jacob got hurt, he was playing wide receiver and it was third down. He went out for a pass and as soon as he touched the ball, got hit so hard that I could hear it on the bench as soon as he touched the ball. He was still on the ground when the play was over and didn’t look like he was getting up anytime soon. Coach went over and helped him up. A few seconds later our offensive coordinator came up to me and said that I would be starting until he was able to play again.

The pain was nothing like I had ever felt before. I had never broken a bone so I didn’t know it would hurt like this. It felt as if the world’s strongest person had just punched me in the lower back. At the time the pain was shooting all the way from the bottom of my tailbone to my mid-back. There was a tear running down my face. Everyone on my team, and all the parents on the sidelines, knew Iam injured. They knew this because I would never cry during a soccer game unless I was in pain.

The second half of the game came and I wanted to go back in despite my strained leg, I told my coach I was ready to go in. As the season went on I kept playing on it I was not performing to my true potential I tried to play over the pain but that was not working out. Half way through the season I finally started going to physical therapy. I was going to physical therapy but I was still able to practice and play I only had to sit out one game and the practices prior to that game.

My stomach tightened. I had never played free safety before. The ball was snapped, and I watched as the tailback widened out to receive the pitch. Never had I felt such an adrenaline rush.

As the bells rang out Edgar gleefully said , “ Hurry up James we need to get there in time to be picked, or else we’re gonna be stuck with the nerds out in the field watching!”, as he ran out to the field toward the road where we would be playing tackle football.

“Fumble! There goes Salem’s number 69, Jonathan Haddad with the football, he’s home free!” I recall the PA announcer. That specific moment was probably the most memorable highlight of my high school football career. Seconds later, my football career would come to an end as the opposing running back lunged at my ankle and I felt a snap and crackling sensation, causing me to immediately fall to the turf. Turns out I broke my ankle and that it would take months to recover before I could even walk. Frustration, anger, and denial were the main things on my mind during those few months. I thought about how hard I worked in the summer; busting my butt to get ready for the season, and wasting a ton of time and money on something that would end in an utter failure.

Football has always been a major part of my life for as long as I can remember. As the youngest of four boys, I watched all three of my older brothers’ play from the side of the field. I never wanted to miss a single game. I would run right along with them, watching every move and play that they made. I will hold these memories for as long as I live. I always knew that I would be out there someday playing, but until then, I would settle for cheering them on. When the day finally came that it was my turn to get out there on that huge, open field and run my plays, I had a feeling that I had never experienced before. I felt a rush from my head to my toes, and all of a sudden, I was focused on nothing but playing the game. I was there for one thing and one thing only, to play my hardest for my team and make my brothers proud. To this day, when my feet hit the field, I still have that same awesome feeling. I finally understood why they would get excited, yelling and jumping around and now I could join in on those fun times with them. They have taught me so much about the game. If it weren’t for them, I definitely wouldn’t be the player that I am today. I could never tell them how much I

As I sat there and let the doctor examine my knee and diagnosis me with a “left knee sprain”. I started to cry. I already knew the outcome that I had a torn ACL (anterior cruciate ligament). I tried to continue to play on it until one time I was playing in a tournament, and I went up to block a girls shot and landed on my