Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1066835
"IN A WEIRD WAY, THE INJURY VALIDATED MY DECISION TO COME BACK. THAT DEFINITELY WASN'T MY FIRST THOUGHT WHILE LYING ON THE GROUND." THE INJURY WHEN I TORE THE ACL in my right knee, my first thought was: "I wish I had scored for my team." Two weeks earlier, I announced my decision to return for my fifth year. Our team has a lot to accomplish. I could not pass up the opportunity to come back for one final season to chase a Big Ten Championship with them. My confidence in this group entering this season could not be higher. When I decided to come back for a fifth season, the Music City Bowl was going to be the starting point to the final chapter of my Northwestern career. I wanted to prove that I was one of the top quarterbacks and Northwestern was one of the top programs in college football. The Lord clearly had a different plan for the course of my career and little did I know that this injury would play a significant role in that plan. To get hurt in the bowl game and have everything suddenly in jeopardy, all I could trust in was that the Lord has control of my life. We may think we have control over what is going on in our lives, but we really don't. This has been reemphasized to me over the course of this injury and the Lord has been shaping me into a better man because of it. In a weird way, the injury validated my decision to come back. That definitely wasn't my first thought while lying on the ground. But later I realized that the support system of my family, friends and the North- western community, and relying on Jesus for comfort and strength, was going to help me come out of this stronger than I was before. A NEW CHAPTER ON JANUARY 9, 2018, I had successful surgery to repair my ACL. I started rehab the next day at 8 a.m. It wasn't what I envisioned, but this was the starting point to my final season at Northwestern. I would have never thought I could do something like starting rehab less than 24 hours after surgery, but what I've learned during this process is that I can push my body so much further than I ever imagined. When I began I decided right away that I wasn't going to waste any time. I wasn't going to allow the injury to be an excuse just because I couldn't do everything physically. I realized that it was going to be great for my development and help me, not slow me down. The injury and recovery process allowed me to improve in many differ- ent ways. I've been able to remold how I physically and mentally play quarterback as a result. I was forced to relearn everything in my mechanics and that allowed me to build new muscle memory. My drops have improved. I am throwing with my core and my legs, which has taken stress off my arm and is producing more velocity on my throws. Because there is so much physical stuff you can't do in the beginning of rehab, I took all the mental reps I could during spring practice. I watched every single rep on film and broke down every read through our virtual reality systems.