This was not a season I would wish on anyone, as far as football careers go. Mijo had full expectations of making first team All-District, maybe even more, after having been recognized the last two seasons as a 2nd Team All-District candidate his sophomore and junior seasons. He worked super hard all summer, at one point squatting a massive 600 pounds and looking like an athlete in his prime is supposed to look like. Then he hurt his knee in a freak wrestling practice, honestly, he was fucking around, but not doing anything he didn't normally do, trying to wrestle two lighter caliber wrestlers at the same time. He landed wrong on his weaker leg, and his problems started.
MRIs and x-rays showed swelling, but nothing broken. He was cautiously rested for the first four games, to give him time to be solid for the important district games. Two games into the meat of the schedule and him getting back into form he suffered a high ankle sprain, which without x-rays, the trainer worried it might be a fractured bone in his ankle. At this point, I witnessed the saddest moment for him as he was crying not because of the pain, but because he just couldn't use his leg, if there were a way to wrap it, he would have continued playing. All the coaches came through where he sat and the coaches hugged him and kissed his head, like he had somehow died, but still kept moving.
X-rays and another MRI would show he had a high ankle sprain, which just happens to take 4-6 weeks to heal, when there were about 4 more games in the season. The doctor was a little blunt but told him, sorry kid, your season is done. We asked what if they make the playoffs, could he play in 5 weeks. The doctor said if he can jump on that ankle without being in pain, then yes. He walked around in a boot to isolate his foot from day to day and game to game. After the last game, on a Thursday night, we had the doctor's appointment on Friday and he was released after biting his lip a little and lying a bit about how much pain there really was, still some, but not a lot.
He suited up for one last time and played with his boys as best he could. Our concern was that he would re-injure himself because he did not give the ankle enough time to heal, but all that worked out alright. Truth of the matter without their QB healthy, they had no chance of winning and floundered about all game long. It was good to see him doing his thing one last time, who knows if there will be a college career right now, but it has all been fun.
The seniors were basically told to sit the 4th quarter out, they had done everything that had been asked of them, it was time for the lower classmen to have the field. This brought on the tears on Mijo and his classmates, it was rough, the bleachers were a good ten feet too high for us to come down on the field and we were told by the announcer we weren't allowed, so we just saw them crying and stood above not being able to console them. It was a necessary part of the game, it always ends at some point, but man, it hurt the way it happened. All I could think of saying when I finally did hug and cry with him for a second was "did you have fun?"
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