A very positive ending to an unfortunate sports incident:
Injured Penn State player walks out of hospital
PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Three-and-a-half months after severely injuring his spine in a football game, Penn State freshman Adam Taliaferro walked out of a hospital Friday on crutches. "I never thought of it as a nightmare. I thought of it as a freak accident that happened to occur to me," Taliaferro, 19, of Voorhees, N.J., said. Taliaferro expects to return to classes at Penn State this summer. He won't play football again, but he was content just to walk again. "I've still got a lot of work to do, but I'm just thankful to get home," Taliaferro said before leaving Magee Rehabilitation Hospital. He will continue with outpatient therapy five days a week. His lead doctor, William Staas Jr., the hospital's president and medical director, said Taliaferro should be walking without crutches in a few weeks. The former defensive back said he was not in pain.
Taliaferro, a true freshman, was injured making a headfirst tackle in the Sept. 23 game at Ohio State. His head connected with the knee of 231-pound running back Jerry Westbrooks, causing Taliaferro's neck to snap back. His spinal cord was severely bruised, but not severed. He had successful spinal fusion surgery at Ohio State Medical Center before being transferred to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia.
Taliaferro thanked the doctors and therapists who pushed him in his recovery. Dr. Wayne Sebastianelli, Penn State's director of athletic medicine, treated Taliaferro in the crucial minutes after the injury. ``He saved my life on the field that day,'' Taliaferro said as Sebastianelli, nearby, fought back tears. ``Without him, I wouldn't be here today.''
The Penn State community has raised more than $200,000 to pay expenses not covered by insurance or the NCAA's catastrophic coverage. Any remaining money will go toward a fund in Taliaferro's name that will assist other college athletes who sustain career-ending injuries.
Gary |
