NORMAN — Adrian Taylor still walks with a slight limp, but that discomfort will eventually fade. The Oklahoma defensive tackle doesn’t see any reason to complain.
“Got through the first practice yesterday,” he said Friday morning. “It was tough, but I got through it. I was happy about that.”
The fact Taylor can still play football or even walk on his own two feet is reason enough to be thankful.
In a 2009 season full of injuries, Taylor’s sent chills down the most spines.
Early in the Sun Bowl against Stanford, Taylor’s right leg became caught in an awkward position as a crush of Stanford offensive linemen and OU defenders converged. The result was a dislocated right ankle that was so gruesome to see, only a sadist could keep from cringing.
Taylor’s memories of the injury aren’t vivid.
“I didn’t look down the whole time I was on the field. I didn’t know what happened. I just knew something didn’t feel right,” he said. “Before I knew the whole training staff was in my face. I knew something bad must have happened to me.”
His right ankle was pointing the wrong direction. It doesn’t take medical training to know that’s bad.
Even players who didn’t see what happened were quickly educated. Defensive tackle Jamarkus McFarland replaced Taylor on the defensive line. The thing he remembers was seeing former defensive tackle Gerald McCoy while OU’s medical team was tending to Taylor.
“I didn’t know if it was serious. But once I saw the tears coming down Gerald’s face, I knew it was a big deal,” McFarland said.
But that was Dec. 31, 2009. Things have changed in the eight months since.
Taylor spent grueling months rehabbing the injury. He couldn’t do much with his lower body initially, but he was a warrior in the weight room.
“I gained physical strength.” he said. “I’ve made gains that I’m loving. I’m as strong as I’ve ever been.”
But the coaching staff doesn’t need to see it right away. Taylor’s played in 14 games the last three seasons and started every one of them last year.
They know what he can do when he’s healthy. There’s no need to push for too much, too fast.
“He’s fought like tooth and nail just like he did for us as a player in his rehab. So he’s fully released, practiced yesterday and (defensive tackles coach Jackie) Shipp did not want to overwhelm him but we’ll keep him in a limited basis and try to progress,” defensive coordinator Brent Venables said. “There’s a difference between rehabbing and actually being out there in the football functional drills and movements.”
Taylor knows there’s a difference. Most of his offseason was spent riding exercise bikes, doing some jogging and working out in pool.
“The pool is very … underrated. The pool will get you in shape,” Taylor said.
But nothing can simulate what it’s like when linemen start colliding and piles start moving. It was one of those inevitable situations that knocked caused Taylor’s injury. OU would like to keep him out of those positions as long as possible.
“I’m used to being out there,” he said. “To see it being taken away from me that quickly … That’s why the coaches tell you to play every play like it’s your last.”
John Shinn 366-3536 jshinn@normantranscript.com
