HighSchool Fan
03-22-2005, 07:59 AM
AUSTIN - • Jordan Shipley is ahead in his rehab schedule, but coach Mack Brown is still being cautious with his redshirt freshman.
Texas receiver Jordan Shipley used spring break to rest his right knee, the first time he was able to do that since an injury forced Shipley into a five-month break from playing football.
Shipley tore his right anterior cruciate ligament during one of the final fall preseason practices last August, and was redshirted as a freshman but had to spend the time rehabilitating the knee. Shipley took part in game situations for the first time in Monday's spring practice, and said his knee is 90 percent.
"I can run straight and cut on my right side," Shipley said. "If I'm one-on-one with somebody, though, that's when I can tell that I can't do what I normally can. The brace kind of gets in the way a little. I can't really do what I want to do."
Shipley will wear the knee brace until the end of spring practices. He is still being held out of many of the team drills, and Texas coach Mack Brown has not decided if he will play in a scrimmage or the April 2 spring game, and said he did not want to speed up Shipley's progress too much.
"Of course I feel like I could scrimmage," Shipley said. "But the trainers can gauge what I can and can't do better than I can. "
The former Burnet High star is ahead of schedule in his rehab but said it was was rough, particularly in the second and third months, when he knew he could have been a deep threat for the Texas offense.
The Longhorns' leading receiver last season was senior Tony Jeffery, whose 437 yards ranked him 207th in the nation.
Although Texas loses Jeffery, the receiver position is more solid with Shipley's return, 22-year-old freshman Quan Cosby arriving in the fall, and the development of redshirt freshman Myron Hardy, who Brown said "has to be a surprise. He was to me."
"The receivers have really improved, and we feel good about them," Brown said. "We're more experienced for sure, and Jordan's back. We've got to continue to throw the ball deep. We tried last year and didn't get it to the wideouts like we wanted to, and that's a key for the last part of spring."
Texas receiver Jordan Shipley used spring break to rest his right knee, the first time he was able to do that since an injury forced Shipley into a five-month break from playing football.
Shipley tore his right anterior cruciate ligament during one of the final fall preseason practices last August, and was redshirted as a freshman but had to spend the time rehabilitating the knee. Shipley took part in game situations for the first time in Monday's spring practice, and said his knee is 90 percent.
"I can run straight and cut on my right side," Shipley said. "If I'm one-on-one with somebody, though, that's when I can tell that I can't do what I normally can. The brace kind of gets in the way a little. I can't really do what I want to do."
Shipley will wear the knee brace until the end of spring practices. He is still being held out of many of the team drills, and Texas coach Mack Brown has not decided if he will play in a scrimmage or the April 2 spring game, and said he did not want to speed up Shipley's progress too much.
"Of course I feel like I could scrimmage," Shipley said. "But the trainers can gauge what I can and can't do better than I can. "
The former Burnet High star is ahead of schedule in his rehab but said it was was rough, particularly in the second and third months, when he knew he could have been a deep threat for the Texas offense.
The Longhorns' leading receiver last season was senior Tony Jeffery, whose 437 yards ranked him 207th in the nation.
Although Texas loses Jeffery, the receiver position is more solid with Shipley's return, 22-year-old freshman Quan Cosby arriving in the fall, and the development of redshirt freshman Myron Hardy, who Brown said "has to be a surprise. He was to me."
"The receivers have really improved, and we feel good about them," Brown said. "We're more experienced for sure, and Jordan's back. We've got to continue to throw the ball deep. We tried last year and didn't get it to the wideouts like we wanted to, and that's a key for the last part of spring."