[Husker] Husker Football Predictions for Next Season

[andy at knipp.com]

OK, I am not a Dr. but I did tear my ACL skiing so I can give some input here. The ACL and PCL are 2 thin ligiments that form an X behind the kneecap. When one is torn, it is gone. There are different ways of repairing it, one was to take a tendon from your arm and glue it into the leg bones. That was never a really strong tendon. Another is to take the middle of the Patella tendon (holds your kneecap in place) and glue it where the ACL should be. That is the most common approach, the ACL heals quickly. However the Patella takes a while to heal. The last way is to take the Patella tendon from a cadaver and replace it. That has a quick healing process but has the potential of some very nasty consequences if the donor had an unknown disease. This was the procedure done for former NU CB Kenny Wilhite, who played in the CFL after. He recovered quickly. Since he had had multiple knee surgeries, using his own Patella was not possible. 

So to answer Mike's question, yes the ACL is fine after 8 months, but the Patella (if that was what they used) was not completely healed (13 months is typical). I suspect that makes his lateral movement (which is quite necessary for a CB) suspect but his straight line speed should be pretty close to normal.

Andy
 
On Apr 9, 2008, mikejaixen at yahoo.com wrote: 
I've heard it said that you are physically ok to
return to the field about 8 months after an ACL
injury, but it usually takes twice as long to return
to your previous level.  Add in the torn tendon he
suffered the previous spring (which also had a 6-8
month recovery period), I really, really think Bowman
was rushed back.

Since he used up his redshirt in 2006 recovering from
the ACL and he could physically play, I don't think
the NCAA would have granted him a medical hardship in
2007, but you never know.