With the loss against Ole Miss and the loss of star running back Kenyan Drake, Alabama is forced to refocus.
Drake was felled by a broken leg early in the second quarter of the game against Ole Miss, a gruesome injury that was mistakenly shown on replay twice. After being carted off the field, tears streaming down his face, he was taken to Birmingham for surgery.
Alabama head coach Nick Saban compared Drake’s situation to an injury Derrick Henry had a couple of years ago, and also likened it to the same injury he had as a player.
When a player’s leg is broken and his ankle is broken, the two are pinned together, according to Saban, who qualified his analysis by saying “that’s not a lot of medical expertise.” He said it would be eight-to-10 weeks before Drake “can start doing things that would allow him to be able to even think about playing football again.”
Drake posted a photo to Instagram of his progress, saying the doctors were impressed with his mobility, even just a few days after surgery.
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Rehab Day 1: Light movement in my ankle to release stiffness. Wasn't too sure about it but they were impressed with my mobility. Swelling is still to be expected for the next few weeks but no where to go but up!
After Drake went down, the motivation switched for the team. It wasn’t only to keep winning for winning’s sake, but to keep winning for their fallen teammate.
“Everybody was just sad because they know how hard Kenyan worked during the week,” Alabama fullback Jalston Fowler said. “We also know that he’s a big part of our offense. “We lose speed, quickness, and him catching the ball as a wide receiver, stuff like that.”
While the team laments the loss of Drake, Fowler is already planning to honor him for the remainder of the season by wearing No. 17 on his tape during games, something that Drake did when Fowler went down.
“We got to step it up for Drake,” Fowler said. “We’ll probably dedicate the rest of this season to him because we lost him.”
The players are dedicating the season to him, and the fans have expressed their support by flooding him with well-wishes.
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Wasn't feeling great this morning. Figure it would be one of the many days like these during the rehab process. Then one of the trainers handed me a stack of these bad boys. How can I be upset with support like this. God is good
With the number of options Drake gave Alabama, Saban obviously hates losing such a dynamic playmaker. But the Crimson Tide’s coach also views this injury as an opportunity for other players to make a name for themselves.
“I don’t think there’s any question about the fact that when you lose a player like that it does have some impact,” Saban said. “But I do think that we have other players that can do those things and now they’re going to get the opportunity to do it.”
Alabama’s season took a minor skid after the loss in Oxford, but with another away game against a tough division rival in Arkansas coming up Saturday, the team is ready to regroup and get back to winning.
“Kenyan Drake was a tough loss,” said offensive lineman Arie Kouandjio said. “I saw him yesterday and he looks good, he’s in high spirits, and we have to use that kind of thing to propel us and use that as motivation to do our best.”
Follow Jonathan on twitter @Jonathan_Biles
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