AJC > Sports > Tech > Blog > Archives > 2007 > October > 23 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USWondering about T. Choice
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I’m no doctor, and I’ve never played one on TV, but I have some theories about Tashard Choice’s knee. I have to preface them by saying a lot of my postulates are based on seven seasons covering the Falcons, and the signs given off when a player first suffers a knee injury, and the timeline afterward. Also, I’ve had three knee scopes, all for cartilage damage, though one time I suffered “laxity” in my ACL in conjunction with the additional cartilage damage. Basically, the ACL was stretched.
So it’s entirely possible the signs given off by Tech — and so far they’ve been little more than signs — are different that what I saw with the Falcons (and other NFL teams) because Tech officials have different protocols. I can’t be sure.
Anyway …
Never in seven seasons covering the Falcons, and another year covering the NFL, do I recall a situation where a torn ACL was not properly diagnosed in the field, or in the lockerroom soon after it happened. This means without MRI, etc. The on-site assessments are never the final word; they’re just about always followed up with MRI evaluation or surgery. But again, doctors ALWAYS got the ACL diagnosis within an hour. I think they twist the knee around and so forth. Don’t know for sure.
I’ve seen very different outcomes with regards to posterior cruciate ligaments, medial collateral ligaments and the rarely-torn (as I remember) lateral collateral ligaments.
My experience is that doctors are also very good at determining that knee damage is not likely an ACL only to then suspect other ligament damage, which often runs parallel with cartilage damage. In these situations, they generally wait on the MRI for complete assessment.
There are many possibilities here. Perhaps doctors suspect ACL damage to Tashard’s right knee, but Gailey, et al, want to wait until further examination — in this case today’s surgery as an MRI has already been performed, and we’ve been told nothing other than it suggested the need for surgery — to confirm it publicly.
If their protocol is more in line with what I experienced in the NFL, they know there is damage, but they don’t suspect the ACL (or we’d know it already), and they may suspect other ligament damage but need this surgery to determine its extent.
And possibly repair it.
Many NFL players missed one game, or none, with PCL damage. No surgery required most of the time. By saying Tashard won’t play Nov. 1, I’d bet they’re not ruling out PCL damage, but fear that may not be the worst of the problem.
With the MCL, surgery again was usually not required — at least not for sake of repair — but I can’t remember a player ever playing the very next week. I remember several missing just one game. Tech has already said Choice won’t play Nov. 1 against Virginia Tech, which would lead me to believe they suspect MCL damage as part of the problem.
Cartilage damage frequently accompanies ligament damage, and I would be surprised if in today’s surgery that’s not cleaned up if there is indeed some meniscus damage.
In the worst of my three surgeries, I was told doctors were fairly certain I had cartilage damage (this was in 1981, a long, long time ago), and that I might have more damage. The plan was to go in and, since I had city high school wrestling championships in 13 days, repair the cartilage and assess the other damage. Beyond that, the plan was to repair it if it was so bad that I wouldn’t be able to wrestle anyway. If the damage to ligaments was minor, and I could wrestle with it but not if they repaired it, they were going to clean the cartilage and leave the ligament damage until later. Turned out, there was no ligament damage. Just a mess made of cartilage. Oh, how I’d like to have some cartilage back.
I could have sure used the conditioning I lost that week, too. Tied 2-2 going to the final period of my first match (with a guy much stronger than me, but whom I crushed 9-2 earlier in the season), I got winded, fell behind, tried a desperation move (hip-toss) that was not among my best, caught my trip ankle under both of us, and broke the damned thing as we both flopped down onto it.
All this mumbo-jumbo said …
My guess is that Tashard has some ligament damage, but not to the ACL (which to my knowledge usually tears completely free of its attachment and rarely in half, although it can fray severely in pulling loose; I think it’s easier to diagnose via external exam because once it’s gone, the knee is wildly de-stabilized, or loose).
By saying he’s already out for the Va. Tech game, I bet they suspect MCL damage. Were it PCL damage ALONE, it wouldn’t be uncommon, from my NFL experience at least, to be able to play 12 days later.
It’s a good bet that there’s cartilage damage as well.
Either way, what a shame. I know some people were still not convinced that Tashard was going to be a high draft choice next spring, as his is not a flashy style. Not me. I’ve seen enough running backs to know that knowing how to run is often more valuable than being able to run super fast. Tashard’s not slow, but no blazer. He reads blocks, though, and is patient beyond belief sometimes in letting a play develop. And he runs hard, and behind his pads. Plus, he got guts aplenty. Good luck teaching all that. He can flat-out play.
If he does have ACL damage, the draft changes for him, although dramatic improvements in surgery/rehab suggest that he could be ready to go next summer unless the knee is catastrophically damaged. If it’s something less, and particularly if he plays late this season and plays well, he could end up right back on track.
I’ve said I typically don’t have a rooting interest in my job. I’m rooting for Choice. Great, great guy. Wonderful teammate, and the epitome of what hard work and attitude can mean not only to one player maximizing his potential, but in helping bond a team and lend it purpose.
We’ll let everybody know something more when we know something more.
Matt
Comments
By hiveredtech
October 23, 2007 2:50 PM | Link to this
It is a good idea to keep everything quiet until they know EXACTLY what is going on so that they not only follow HIPPA reg’s….but more importantly do nothing to hamper draft status with speculation that may be more eggregious than accurate.
By Matt Winkeljohn
October 23, 2007 3:07 PM | Link to this
hiveredtech,
Tashard, you can be sure, has been fully made aware of his legal rights with regards to information shared with the media. He can agree to let the school disseminate information, or not agree.
Tech just released information, which will be posted on our website soon in story form, that the surgery went well, and it was an MCL injury. He may be able to play at Duke Nov. 10.
As for saying nothing until knowing EXACTLY what’s wrong, that’s Tech’s business, and Tashard’s. It’s not mine. There are no laws regarding speculation.
And the idea that speculation might hurt his draft status half a year before the draft is stupid. No speculation, not even if somebody speculated that his career was in jeopardy, would affect his draft status. Between now and then, regardless of the surgery, NFL teams will poke, prod, and interrogate Tashard, Tech officials and doctors over and over and over until they know more about his knee than Tashard.
Speculation will not carry the day when it comes to decisions that NFL teams make. Those days are long, long gone, at least with regards to something like knee injuries. Absolutely gone.
Matt
P.S. My speculation was dead on. MCL.
By Blake
October 23, 2007 3:13 PM | Link to this
It’s just sad that he got hurt for a season that’s already lost, and will only continue to go downward without him. Maybe if Tech had a coach with some guts we’d have Calvin back to throw to while Choice is gone. But why would Johnson come back to Atlanta with a chance at another loss to Georgia and a trip to the Toilet Bowl December 5th in Nowhereville, Kansas. Chan sucks. How much is enough before we are tired of being a .500 team? That is all.
By old gold engineer
October 23, 2007 3:16 PM | Link to this
Matt, thanks for the update and keep us posted. Is there any word on Rashaun Grant’s injury? I’ll share an observation on Grant’s performance. I had not been very impressed by what he had done prior to the Army game. Whenever he had the chance to make a play, he seemed to be very tentative or undecided about what to do. He also seemed to drop too many passes. I thought the same thing the first few times he carried against Army. Then, maybe it was the realization that he was the go-to guy, but for whatever reason, he started looking great. Maybe it was just the number of reps. I hated to see him get injured and hope he’ll be able to contribute like that some more this season.
By RAMBLE ON!
October 23, 2007 3:28 PM | Link to this
So long as he’s 100% for UGAg, I don’t care if he plays another down before then.
Next week is going to be our biggest challenge anyway. Since he won’t play, get him back 100% before he takes another snap.
By gtbaltfan
October 23, 2007 3:36 PM | Link to this
Since Choice will be out for at least the VAT game, we need to put in a Tebow-esque game plan and start Nesbitt against the Hokies. He appears to be a big tough kid who can get some yards and he also has a rifle arm. Give him a full house backfield with Grant, Dwyer and Cox. There’s more than a week to put in some plays and I bet it would work. Maybe the Jacket brain trust can watch Tebow dissect the Dawgs on Saturday for some insight. Let’s shake this thing up —- nothing to lose!! Go Tech.
By 3 Rivers jacket
October 23, 2007 3:54 PM | Link to this
Good news on Tashard. i prefer to be positive. Maybe this can be one of thse things that can rally the team for the VT. game. We have extra time to prepare and maybe the banged up o line will be ready and cna hold thse blocks a split second longer as they know that T is not there. You can pull that off for one game sometimes- the emotion of replacing a leader. That game will have to see a grat d effort and special teams anyway. The nyou let T rest for Duke as we should beat them with Wes Durham at Rb. Then you have him for the last 2 games- the ACC champ and the Orange Bowl. That may be carrying the optimism a bit far. But we can win one game without T if people step up. We need to the Bc fans for the rest of the year and also pull for NC St. Wake and Miami angasinst Va..
By Calvin
October 23, 2007 4:02 PM | Link to this
Boy, that was a lot of words. If Choice was a Junior, already known to be leaving Tech early for the money, I wouldn’t care about his NFL draft prospects. But since he’s a Senior, I do care, and wish him the best.
By gtbaltfan
October 23, 2007 4:05 PM | Link to this
Daer 3 Rivers, I like optomism too. I think we have a shot at beating VAT without T. I also still have hope that we can win out the regular season at 9-3, particularly if T can return and be effective for UNC and UGAY. However, there ain’t no way we jump over UVA, VAT and Miami. While nothing’s impossible,UVA would have to lose all 4 of their remaining conference games for us to overtake them. That simply isn’t going to happen.
ps, if you’re from pittsburgh, I got one thing to say: GO RAVENS!! We’ll see you on 11/5.
By surfrider
October 23, 2007 4:46 PM | Link to this
Great Article. First and foremost Tech has to put Choice’s health first and totally rely on the Doctors advice on whether and when he could play. I believe many times fatigue plays a role in injury and accidents, and that is why I even admire Choice more. Choice is a complete back that should do well on an NFL team. This injury may raise some questions but the history now is so in depth on case studies, if he does o.k. in trials next spring he should be o.k. for the draft. The Falcons could use someone like this for depth until Dunn retires.
By braveswin
October 23, 2007 4:51 PM | Link to this
Just saw where T Choice could be back by 11/10.Good news for Techies,not so good for everyone else.As a Dawg fan I could have waited until next yrs NFL season to watch him again but it’s good news for what appears to be a good guy. Good luck to Tech the rest of the way……Except……you know
By BuzzFactor
October 23, 2007 4:56 PM | Link to this
WHile I agree it’s not likely to happen, it would only be 3 games UVA needs to lose as well as VaTech lose 3, to give us a 3-way tie. Record within the division would eliminate one team, then head to head between the other two.
By E
October 23, 2007 5:05 PM | Link to this
I agree with you Matt,
For someone like myself who has torn his ACL, in both knees, you and the doctors know right away, with a simple exam, that its a tear. You can feel the “bone on bone” and the unstability of your knee when it happens, an MRI is just a formality in those casese. In the case of T.Choice, I didn’t suspect a season ending knee injury, becuse we would have known by late Saturday if in was an ACL.
By AlabamaRamblinwreck
October 23, 2007 6:45 PM | Link to this
Tashard is a delight to have at Tech. His leadership has been invaluable to Tech this year.
With that said, Chan must go. Let’s don’t let him ruin another good quarterback prospect, Josh Nesbitt, by coaching him!!
I truly believe that no matter who the quarterback is at Tech, as long as Chan is there, he will be get worse, not better…..
By must be in the Ala water
October 23, 2007 7:18 PM | Link to this
that makes some suffer chronic displeasure.
By GM
October 23, 2007 7:42 PM | Link to this
Matt: a little too long on the post this time, and too much speculation.
I hear Gailey is going to play it conservative and punt on 1st down next week because TC is out, unless there is a 52 yard field goal opportunity.
By hiveredtech
October 23, 2007 8:31 PM | Link to this
Matt
You misread my post…I did not have any issue with your article…it was a nice read. I was simply responding as to why Georgia Tech was so quiet. I completely agree a write-up such as yours would not hurt anything.
I enjoy your blog!
By Fall Jacket
October 23, 2007 8:55 PM | Link to this
nice write up Matt. Very insightful and I agree. You can’t help but to root for someone like Choice. Class act.
By BB
October 23, 2007 9:14 PM | Link to this
LMAO OFF GM…YOU’RE PROBABLY RIGHT.PUNT ON EACH 1ST DOWN AND WAIT FOR LIGHTNING….HAHAHAHAHA!! TIME FOR THE PLAYERS TOKICK SOME A*
By Smyrntown David
October 23, 2007 9:28 PM | Link to this
Good stuff Matt. I like how a fan above mentioned something about having a Tebow-esque wrinkle or two for VT. I agree that we have nothing to lose and have zero chance to line up with our stale offense and hope our D lets us win 13-10.
Regarding TC. Don’t let him play unitl UNC. Even then, don’t play him much. Most Tech fans realize we’re staring another mediocre bowl game in the face - there is only 1 game left we truly care about and its Georgia. Be sure he’s as healthy as he can be for his final home game.
By Chantice
October 23, 2007 10:15 PM | Link to this
All I know is that he plays again. We win again and the Tickle Piles continue. Oh goody, such fun.
By TC
October 23, 2007 11:51 PM | Link to this
It’s so great to hear that Choice will be back. I was pulling for him! I really didn’t want him to have to sit the rest of his senior season. He deserves to go out with a win over UGA! What a great guy and football player! Hope Tech can pull it together for VT next week without him!
By scooter11
October 24, 2007 9:36 AM | Link to this
Still think Matt gets paid by the word.
By Chantell
October 24, 2007 10:58 AM | Link to this
Yes Chantice, and the Hive is once again giggly and gay.
By GHJ
October 24, 2007 12:29 PM | Link to this
More information that I needed….boring.