Aug. 14 was a fateful day. The first of eight double days, means it’s time to truly buckle down and work our tails off. Unbeknownst to me, the football gods had something much different in mind. It comes time for lineman pits. Mano a mano, this is what football is all about. Today I’m going heads with team heffalump Alex Sutherland. Great guy, great football player, but he is somewhat ginormous. He falls on my poor knee, torquing it inward, and all that goes through my mind is “oh s---!” It has officially been diagnosed for now as a sprained MCL, between grades 1-2 (3 being a full tear). We are still awaiting the results of my MRI, but the MCL is the lesser known ligament brethren of the ACL, conveniently located on the inner part of one’s knee.

Since then, I have spent the majority of my waking hours rehabbing, rehabbing, rehabbing. Painful as it was, thanks to the amazingly wonderful patient, knowledgeable and occasionally even saint -like Lynn Castro (when she isn’t absolutely sick of me and reverts to Jasper’s personal slave driver), I have made a ton of progress in recovery. Just for the record, much thanks to Liz Rea and the “Lynn-tern” Carlos who have put up with me far too much for zero compensation. We actually calculated the other day that since the injury I have spent over 100 hours working endlessly in that training room. That 12x10 little ice box is my home.

I have to add though, it says a lot about Gunn kids when the primary hang-out spot on campus is our training room. Literally. You’d be shocked at the dozens that populate that small, overheated room the minute the bell rings. Chaos does not quite adequately describe it. Either we always think we’re hurt or are just convinced cripples are so damn cool. Or maybe Lynn and her powdered Gatorade are just that awesome.

A typical workout for Dean:

• terminal knee extensions which straighten and extend
• isometric contracts which involve sitting and contracting quads
• “forced flexion” which pressure is applied to force flexing in legs
• leg balancing on a dynadisk
• cardio work
• kareoka aka grapevines
• heating and last but not least, pounds upon pounds of ice.