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McCoy's Alamo status still unknown

AUSTIN, Texas — For four weeks, QB Colt McCoy's pinched nerve has been a hot topic, as Texas coaches and fans ponder whether the irritated fibers in the quarterback's neck will be healed in time to play in the Alamo Bowl.

Texas coach Mack Brown said Wednesday that he remains optimistic McCoy will play, Dec. 30, against Iowa. But no one knows — nerve injuries have their own unique time table for healing.

Team doctors will check McCoy again next week in San Antonio. Brown said Wednesday he doesn't know how long he can wait to decide on whether McCoy can play in the bowl. If doctors won't clear him for contact, senior, walk-on Matt McCoy, who has never thrown a pass in a college game, will take over the offense.

The good news is that McCoy has been practicing since the Longhorns resumed bowl workouts 12 days ago. Quarterbacks aren't allowed to be hit, even when they're healthy.

But for the past four weeks, the lingering image fans shared of McCoy was the last hit McCoy sustained, the one that left the quarterback lying on the field at Royal-Memorial Stadium, his right shoulder seemingly glued to the grass as he kicked his legs in pain.

After spending three hours at Brackenridge Hospital, McCoy was diagnosed with a severe pinched nerve in his neck. And it's a common diagnosis with athletes, particularly football players and wrestlers. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons estimates that 70 percent of college football players have suffered some sort of pinched nerve injury, usually called stingers or burners.

The severity of the injuries vary, although players all initially experience sharp, radiating pain and a loss of strength in one or both arms. The symptoms may last for several seconds or linger for weeks.

"We had plenty of them, but none as obvious as Colt McCoy's," said Spanky Stephens, a trainer for the Texas football team from 1967-99. "It happened to Earl Campbell. It happened to Ricky Williams. . . . They didn't miss any games. But they missed practice because they couldn't have any contact."

In the NFL, Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre suffered such an injury in early October and did not miss a game. Denver linebacker Al Wilson suffered a pinched nerve two weeks ago, with Broncos doctors taking the same on-field, stretcher precautions as the Longhorns did with McCoy. A week after Wilson was strapped to a stretcher, with his neck immobilized, he was back in the lineup.

The last time the pinched nerves of a Longhorn were so publicized was in 2001. In the first half of the Big 12 Conference title game, offensive tackle Mike Williams and running back Cedric Benson collided as both were attempting to make a tackle after a Texas turnover.

Less than four weeks later, both made the trip to San Diego for the Holiday Bowl. Williams was able to play. Benson, who still was experiencing weakness in his right arm, couldn't play. Offensive coordinator Greg Davis said that Benson ultimately didn't want to risk being a liability to the team.

These type of nerve injuries usually occur with a position that initiates contact. Doctors with the North American Spine Society say there are two common ways to pinch a nerve: The nerves are compressed as the player's head is forced forward or backward, or the nerves in the neck and shoulder are over-stretched as the head is forced sideways, away from the shoulder.

More serious, career-threatening injuries are caused when an athlete suffers from cervical stenosis, an abnormal narrowing of the spinal column.

Former Longhorn basketball standout T.J. Ford was diagnosed with spinal stenosis the summer after he graduated from high school. He suffered two serious bouts of numbness, one after a fall during a pick-up game at UT in 2003, and another his rookie season in the NBA. He had surgery to fuse two vertebrae in his neck and missed the 2004-05 season. He has resumed playing.

Dallas Cowboys receiver Michael Irvin also was diagnosed with stenosis in October, 1999, after he suffered brief paralysis against Philadelphia. He was placed on injured reserve and retired in early 2000.

Testing on McCoy showed no structural damage, and he said last week that doctors have given him no reason to think his career was in danger.

"I know that nerve injuries are pretty important, and you want them to heal so you won't keep re-injuring it," McCoy said. "The doctors are doing a great job. They're treating me and they just want me to be 100 percent. They're evaluating me at practice, and the coaches are evaluating me, and we'll just see where it goes from here."

Dr. Atilla Onan, an orthopedic surgeon who practices with the Central Texas Spine Institute, has read about McCoy's injury through media reports. Although he has not treated the quarterback, he said that because there was no structural damage found, "that indicates (the injury) is probably temporary."

But compounding the problem is that McCoy suffered a related injury on a quarterback sneak Nov. 11 at Kansas State. McCoy lowered his head and followed his blockers into the end zone, as Wildcats linebacker Brandon Archer collided with McCoy shoulder to shoulder.

McCoy walked off the field, but was in obvious pain as he was checked on the sideline. Doctors would not allow him to return, but he was cleared for contact eight days later for the Texas A&M game. He left that game with 20 seconds to play after A&M defensive lineman Michael Bennett hit him under the chin as McCoy threw a pass. Minutes before the final hit, McCoy was blasted by Aggie Kellen Heard. The hit was so severe and so late that officials tossed Heard from the game. McCoy said the Heard blow didn't cause a problem.

The danger is when the injuries recur. Doctors say that if a player keeps suffering these type of stingers, there is a risk for permanent, career-ending damage. Onan said a player with two previous injuries would have a "minor" risk. Three or more would put the player in a "moderate" risk category.

Onan said he would consider McCoy's case as just one injury, with the A&M game aggravating the condition he suffered against Kansas State.

Dr. Kevin Christensen, an orthopedic surgeon at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, said he takes a "conservative approach" to treating such injuries. He requires an athlete to have full strength and be pain free for a month before he'll clear him to play again.

Onan said he takes the same approach.

McCoy's situation does seem to be following the month-long timetable. Brad McCoy, Colt's father, said the symptoms began receding while Colt was being treated at the hospital, Nov. 24.

Stephens said trainers also have to be conservative in guiding the athlete's rehabilitation.

"You don't go in and aggressively attack it," said Stephens, who now is executive director of the Texas Athletic Trainers Association. "The nerve has to calm down first. It's like a baby crying in a restaurant. You can't do anything about the crying. You have to let it calm down first, then work on it."

McCoy will go home to Graham for the holidays. If he's cleared for contact, McCoy likely will be fitted with special pads, although he may not be able to wear much cushioning. Because he's a quarterback, the pads can't restrict his throwing motion. In the offseason, he'll work on his neck and shoulder muscles to prevent the stinger from happening again.

Suzanne Halliburton writes for the Austin American-Statesman.