Ross recovering from surgery to repair ankle injury


Former Humboldt High athlete Brady Ross is preparing for his final year on the University of Iowa football team after undergoing surgery to repair an injured left ankle injury. Independent photo by Phil Monson.

The 2018 football season was clicking along pretty well for former Humboldt standout Brady Ross until he suffered a season-ending injury at Indiana (Bloomington) back on Oct. 13.
Ross, a starting fullback on the University of Iowa football team, injured his left ankle in the second half of the Hawkeyes’ 42-16 victory over the Indiana Hoosiers.
The 2015 Humboldt High School graduate did get in on a few plays in the Iowa’s 27-22 Outback Bowl victory over Mississippi State back on Jan. 1, then two days later he underwent surgery to repair the torn ligaments in his ankle.
“It was in the second half of the Indiana game. We were running a 27B and I went to block a linebacker. I was trying to drive my feet through him and then I felt a 300-pound man smash into the back of my legs while my feet were dug into the turf. I instantly knew something was not right. I had severe pain from the knee down,” Ross said.
“I was immediately having flashbacks to Drake (teammate Drake Kulick, suffered broken leg against Nebraska) in 2016. For all I knew my leg snapped in half. I didn’t know what happened but the pain was really bad,” Ross said. “Surprisingly I was able to limp off the field.”
“The x-rays in the locker room showed nothing was broken. But once we got off the plane in Iowa City, I couldn’t put any weight on it. I got an MRI right away and they said every ligament between my tibia and fibula down in the high ankle area was completely torn,” Ross said.
“They call the injury a severe high ankle sprain, which I think they need to come up with a new name for it as ankle sprain doesn’t make it sound as bad as it really is,” Ross said. “It was the complete tearing of ligaments.”
“In talking to coach Ferentz about it, he said ‘I’d almost rather have a player tear an ACL over this because that is predictable and you know what to do to repair it and when you can return.’ A high ankle sprain injury – the severity varies so much,” Ross said. “When you think you are back, then the next thing you know you try to take a step and down you go.”
High ankle injuries have altered a lot of athletic careers over the years. Fortunately, modern medicine has come up with surgical repair work to allow athletes to make successful returns.
Rest and rehab over the final two months of the season wasn’t providing Ross and team doctors with the results they had hoped for, so plans were made in December for post-bowl game surgery in early January.
“That was the logic behind this surgery in that it should eliminate the likelihood of the injury re-occurring. Hopefully my conditioning and rehab before the surgery will pay dividends in my recovery process,” Ross said.

Up until the injury, Ross had one heck of a season going for himself as he contributed to the Hawkeyes’ 9-4 season and berth in the Outback Bowl, where they defeated Mississippi State, 27-22.
Ross started the first six games at fullback and played special teams. He carried the ball six times for 20 yards and caught four passes for 28 yards. In his third year as a starter, Ross has developed a reputation as a standout blocker for the Hawkeyes.
He broke a bone in his hand early in the 2017 season but played through that injury.
“That’s the thing about football. If you play it long enough you are going to get injured. I had a string of injuries my senior year in high school that kept me out of multiple games for football and basketball,” Ross said.
“I’ve definitely been blessed that I haven’t been an injury-prone person in my athletic career. But when a 300-pound guy dives into the back of your anchored leg, stuff is going to start snapping inside you,” Ross said.

“Hopefully I’ll get my foot in order and be able to strap it up one more time,” Ross said.

See full story in the Humboldt Independent Newspaper. Subscribe today for print/digital access by selecting the link on this page to get started!

Rate this article: 
Average: 1.5 (88 votes)