Personal Narrative: My College Basketball Career Ending Injury

How did Roger Banister break the 4 min mile? How did Dennis Kimetto run a marathon in 2:02:57?

It is time to speak about my injury that happened about two years ago. A lot of people nowadays ask me almost every day “Deshaun why don’t you play football for the M state Fergus Falls Spartans? “ and I tell them I didn’t get all of my football equipment in time, so the coach didn’t let me play, but in reality, I can’t play because I have a very bad back injury. So now for the people that are curious about what happened to my back here is my story from the beginning to the end.

As athletes, we always feel invincible. No matter what I had been told, I was convinced that a serious injury would never happen to me. The coaches and doctors had described the “popping” sound that accompanies an ACL injury, but for years I ignored them. One day, when I least expected it, it happened to me. I tore my right ACL in September of 2012, at the beginning of my eighth grade year. For me, it could not have happened at a more inopportune time for my future soccer career and, at the time, I thought my dreams were over. I was convinced I would never play soccer in college, let alone be able to play for my varsity high school team as a freshman.

I was not actually planning to do this event, but I have to be honest, after 65 OCR’s in 2015 I am burned-out both physically and mentally and I just wanted to have an amazing weekend with both amazing people and amazing obstacles and both Canada and Dead End fit that need very well. I cannot say enough good things about my time in Canada this year and was very happy to be able to go and cover this event on short notice/request.

Making the decision to become a collegiate athlete was not one of ease. Having participated in sports my whole life, I was used to the commitment it took to play and could see myself continuing my career after high school. However, collegiate athletics is in no way similar to high school or travel club sports. No matter what division played, the sport is very intense and requires individuals to commit on an entirely new level.

My basketball team and I were going head to head against Lamar Bruni Middle School for the second time that season. The parents loved to cheer us on and capture so many pictures of us, they were our cheerleaders all season long. We were 5-0 at the time and losing that game was not an option for any of my teammates nor the coaches. Unfortunately, I was not able to give it my all in that game due to me twisting my ankle in the third quarter.

A. I wish I never would've missed that buzzer beater in the game. My team really depended on me. And I let them down. I felt so sad that day that I wanted to quit basketball. I thought i wasn't good enough when I missed that shot.

The cool thing about humans, is no two are exactly the same, every one is different in their own way. We’re all defined in unique ways, some by their jobs, some by their livelihood, or interests such as basketball. This is one of my favorite things to do in life, there's just nothing better than setting foot on that court. When basketball season starts to roll around, memories from past years come flooding in. Being able to smell the freshly popped popcorn all throughout the gym. Looking up at the crowd and seeing everyone in the stands cheering us on, arguing with refs about a call, or not really paying attention to the game at all. The feeling I get when I’m on the court is second to nothing. This is where I go when I need need to just get away and think.

An all time favorite activities of me to do and to watch is basketball. Basketball is something I relish because it's exciting and really affecting, I started playing when I was in fourth grade. When I became attentive in basketball it was because I was trying out sports that year and I determine I admired it and really, enjoying it. Basketball is something my dad, and my brother plays, too. My brother and I try to practice, and learn from each other when we both have the time to practice.

I've been waiting for this moment for so long. I watched my brother play basketball on a real team, and now it was my turn. I was going to play in the Upward league, but my first step to playing Upward was an evaluation, where I could show my skills to the coaches. I finished the evaluations with my head held high and had done what I thought was a stellar job. Now, it was my turn to play on the court. I was more than ready.

My basketball team had just finished traveling Connecticut winning game after game to end up finally making it to the state championships, coming in second place by a small margin. I was energized and felt insurmountable. This attitude quickly changed however, as a result of undertaking a new sport in the fall season of my freshman year: cross country.

My basketball career was one to remember, I had a lot of coaches I liked and a handful I didn’t like. But one coach in particular, stuck with me because of one terrible game I had. I remember the day like it was yesterday, we were playing West aka the rich snobs of Billings. I didn’t play much in the first half but when I did play, it wasn’t up to his standards I guess. After making a great read on the defence I ended up turning the ball over. Imagine this, I had the ball at the top of the key, the defence in a 2-3 zone, I had a teammate on each side of me, spread out to perfection, and one man in front of me at the free throw line. I passfaked to my right and the defence jumped at it trying to steal the pass as this was happening, I tried to make a no look pass to the guy at the free throw line

I was just swinging my bat, over and over again, with no thoughts in my head. The methodical movement of my bat and the sound of the breeze it makes, was calming to me. My mind was blank as I was just going through my on deck routine. But like always, a few thoughts slipped in. You are going to strike out again, for the third time, my mind told me, You are going to let the whole team down, and lose the game. The championship game. I battled the little devil me on my left shoulder, who was feeding my brain these awful thoughts, by repeating an encouraging phrase. You got this Ashley, you got this Ashley. Feeling better about stepping up to the plate, I look up, only to feel my entire body fill with dread. The catcher was just standing up a little

It was a typical day in the McClain household. Everybody was woken up at exactly 7.00 am. Mom said the prayer and then everybody went to school. Little did they know, a massacre was going to occur that night.

Both my family and my basketball coach have served as catalysts in changing me for the better. My mother made me change my attitude into a more positive one. My basketball coach has been coaching me since I was 7, constantly stressing me to work hard to get better. My grandmother changed me into being little into a 13-year-old responsible boy, and the same goes for the rest of my family