RATTLERS316
02-03-2007, 11:12 AM
good luck to him...he made a good impression on me this year:)
Westlake's Foles rehabs shoulder after Brees-like surgery
Arizona State commitment's shoulder repaired by same doctor who fixed Brees'.
By Rick Cantu
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Saturday, February 03, 2007
The constant pain that shot through Nick Foles' body was almost unbearable by the time the Westlake quarterback reached the Class 5A state championship game.
Foles, this past season's Central Texas player of the year, played nearly the entire year with a serious shoulder injury. He felt a jolt of sharp needles every time he released the football in Westlake's 43-29 championship game loss to Southlake Carroll.
'He's anxious to throw the football again,' physical therapist Lori Schwanz says of Nick Foles. 'Sometimes I have to pull in the reins.'
Westlake QB Nick Foles played nearly the entire 2006 season with a serious shoulder injury.
He played on, however, completing 24 of his 43 passes for 299 yards and a touchdown — a remarkable performance, considering he was playing with a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder.
"At one point, my shoulder came out of its socket," Foles recalled. "The pain went through my body and to the right side of my brain."
This week, nearly six weeks after he threw his final pass, Foles was busy pedaling a stationary bike at an Austin rehabilitation clinic. The black sling that he's required to wear every day had been tossed to the floor. Under the watchful eye of physical therapist Lori Schwanz, Foles — who will sign a scholarship on Wednesday with Arizona State — is in the first stage of a four-month process to come back from shoulder surgery to repair ligaments and tendons.
"Look how skinny my arm is," Foles said, curling a three-pound weight.
"It's muscle atrophy," Schwanz explained, the result of his arm being physically inactive for more than a month.
Foles has lost 10 pounds since having surgery three weeks ago in Birmingham, Ala. to repair the torn labrum. The 90-minute procedure was done by renowned orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews, the same doctor who repaired Drew Brees' shoulder in January 2006.
Call it a Westlake connection.
It was Brees himself — the quarterback of Westlake's 1996 state championship team — who notified Dr. Andrews when he learned of Foles' injury. After a few phone calls from Brees, Foles was off to the American Sports Medicine Institute in Birmingham to meet the surgeon whose list of clients includes Brees, Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb and baseball pitchers John Smoltz, Kerry Wood and Roger Clemens.
"The parallels between Drew and Nick are amazing," Andrews said. "They have the same temperament, the same motivation. Good athletes are in that mold. This young kid is in the mold of Drew Brees."
Brees' recovery has been well chronicled. He sustained a 360-degree tear of his labrum — which required 11 surgical anchors, while only three or four are usually required — in his final game with the San Diego Chargers in 2005.
Foles knew his labrum was injured but did not know the severity of it until he went to Alabama. The labrum, a ring of cartilage that surrounds the entry to the shoulder joint, was almost completely torn. He needed eight surgical anchors to complete the operation.
Foles committed to Arizona State last spring. The Sun Devils are expected to sign another quarterback — Chasen Stangel of San Jacinto, Calif. — on Wednesday, and returning starter Rudy Carpenter will be a junior this fall. New Sun Devils coach Dennis Erickson and offensive coordinator Rich Olson visited Foles in Austin last week.
"I'll be honest. I was actually excited to have surgery," said Foles, who needed the operation in order to play again.
Foles' father, Larry, suspected something was wrong as he watched his son's passing mechanics toward the last half of football season. Originally hurt during a 31-24 loss to Austin High on Sept. 29, Foles began releasing the football near his ear rather than over his head.
Still, the quarterback did not disclose the extent of his shoulder pain to his family or team, fearing a bad diagnosis might force him to miss the remainder of the season. As Westlake won game after game in the playoffs, his desire to play negated his need for medical attention, he said.
"I kept telling the trainers I was fine, (that) I can handle it," Foles said.
The Chaparrals rallied from two District 25-5A losses by catching fire in the playoffs, winning four games before falling to Southlake Carroll in the Division I championship game. Foles threw for 3,266 yards and 32 touchdowns this season, passing Brees' career marks at Westlake for passing yards and touchdowns.
"My shoulder popped (against Austin High) and my arm felt dead," Foles said. "I was praying nothing was torn. I tried to tell myself that everything was fine and just play through it.
"If you watched me during the season, I was always throwing the ball on the sideline just to keep warm."
Foles goes through physical therapy three times a week. Schwanz described him as an "overachiever."
"He's anxious to throw the football again," she said. "Sometimes I have to pull in the reins and tell him his limitations."
That should tell you how tough Foles is, Andrews said.
"I think this kid is going to make me look pretty good," he said. "I'm sure he'll be a big-time college player, and maybe we'll see him on Sundays someday."
rcantu@statesman.com; 445-3953
Westlake's Foles rehabs shoulder after Brees-like surgery
Arizona State commitment's shoulder repaired by same doctor who fixed Brees'.
By Rick Cantu
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Saturday, February 03, 2007
The constant pain that shot through Nick Foles' body was almost unbearable by the time the Westlake quarterback reached the Class 5A state championship game.
Foles, this past season's Central Texas player of the year, played nearly the entire year with a serious shoulder injury. He felt a jolt of sharp needles every time he released the football in Westlake's 43-29 championship game loss to Southlake Carroll.
'He's anxious to throw the football again,' physical therapist Lori Schwanz says of Nick Foles. 'Sometimes I have to pull in the reins.'
Westlake QB Nick Foles played nearly the entire 2006 season with a serious shoulder injury.
He played on, however, completing 24 of his 43 passes for 299 yards and a touchdown — a remarkable performance, considering he was playing with a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder.
"At one point, my shoulder came out of its socket," Foles recalled. "The pain went through my body and to the right side of my brain."
This week, nearly six weeks after he threw his final pass, Foles was busy pedaling a stationary bike at an Austin rehabilitation clinic. The black sling that he's required to wear every day had been tossed to the floor. Under the watchful eye of physical therapist Lori Schwanz, Foles — who will sign a scholarship on Wednesday with Arizona State — is in the first stage of a four-month process to come back from shoulder surgery to repair ligaments and tendons.
"Look how skinny my arm is," Foles said, curling a three-pound weight.
"It's muscle atrophy," Schwanz explained, the result of his arm being physically inactive for more than a month.
Foles has lost 10 pounds since having surgery three weeks ago in Birmingham, Ala. to repair the torn labrum. The 90-minute procedure was done by renowned orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews, the same doctor who repaired Drew Brees' shoulder in January 2006.
Call it a Westlake connection.
It was Brees himself — the quarterback of Westlake's 1996 state championship team — who notified Dr. Andrews when he learned of Foles' injury. After a few phone calls from Brees, Foles was off to the American Sports Medicine Institute in Birmingham to meet the surgeon whose list of clients includes Brees, Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb and baseball pitchers John Smoltz, Kerry Wood and Roger Clemens.
"The parallels between Drew and Nick are amazing," Andrews said. "They have the same temperament, the same motivation. Good athletes are in that mold. This young kid is in the mold of Drew Brees."
Brees' recovery has been well chronicled. He sustained a 360-degree tear of his labrum — which required 11 surgical anchors, while only three or four are usually required — in his final game with the San Diego Chargers in 2005.
Foles knew his labrum was injured but did not know the severity of it until he went to Alabama. The labrum, a ring of cartilage that surrounds the entry to the shoulder joint, was almost completely torn. He needed eight surgical anchors to complete the operation.
Foles committed to Arizona State last spring. The Sun Devils are expected to sign another quarterback — Chasen Stangel of San Jacinto, Calif. — on Wednesday, and returning starter Rudy Carpenter will be a junior this fall. New Sun Devils coach Dennis Erickson and offensive coordinator Rich Olson visited Foles in Austin last week.
"I'll be honest. I was actually excited to have surgery," said Foles, who needed the operation in order to play again.
Foles' father, Larry, suspected something was wrong as he watched his son's passing mechanics toward the last half of football season. Originally hurt during a 31-24 loss to Austin High on Sept. 29, Foles began releasing the football near his ear rather than over his head.
Still, the quarterback did not disclose the extent of his shoulder pain to his family or team, fearing a bad diagnosis might force him to miss the remainder of the season. As Westlake won game after game in the playoffs, his desire to play negated his need for medical attention, he said.
"I kept telling the trainers I was fine, (that) I can handle it," Foles said.
The Chaparrals rallied from two District 25-5A losses by catching fire in the playoffs, winning four games before falling to Southlake Carroll in the Division I championship game. Foles threw for 3,266 yards and 32 touchdowns this season, passing Brees' career marks at Westlake for passing yards and touchdowns.
"My shoulder popped (against Austin High) and my arm felt dead," Foles said. "I was praying nothing was torn. I tried to tell myself that everything was fine and just play through it.
"If you watched me during the season, I was always throwing the ball on the sideline just to keep warm."
Foles goes through physical therapy three times a week. Schwanz described him as an "overachiever."
"He's anxious to throw the football again," she said. "Sometimes I have to pull in the reins and tell him his limitations."
That should tell you how tough Foles is, Andrews said.
"I think this kid is going to make me look pretty good," he said. "I'm sure he'll be a big-time college player, and maybe we'll see him on Sundays someday."
rcantu@statesman.com; 445-3953