As many around him try to cope, Grothe stays upbeat

Just 2 minutes and 54 seconds remained in the first half Saturday night when Matt Grothe rolled around left end and toward the sideline at Raymond James Stadium.

Starting out, the play was no different than hundreds of other runs during Grothe's four-year career as the starting quarterback for the University of South Florida. At the end of his 9-yard gain, though, Grothe was tripped from behind by a defender from Charleston Southern, causing him to stumble awkwardly into a second player coming at him hard from the front.

The hit caused his body to twist awkwardly, and as he lay at USF's 32-yard line, Grothe didn't need doctors or anyone else to tell him what had happened.

"Any time I feel my knee coming out of the socket, I knew something was wrong," he said.

The play had resulted in a first down, but Grothe was the only one in the stadium who knew it was the last down of his career.

So he lingered, knowing it was over, knowing he would never be on that grass again as a player for the Bulls, but wanting it to last as long as he could before being assisted to the locker room by two USF trainers.

"I laid there for a few minutes. I could have gotten up after 30 seconds but I didn't want to get up because I kind of knew what was coming next," Grothe said Tuesday in his first public comments since the collision tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

He'll need surgery and at least six months of rehabilitation. He'd like to get a shot next year at the National Football League, but if that doesn't work out he'll do whatever is open to him - the Canadian Football League, the new United Football League, whatever.

"Hopefully I can continue to play," he said.

If not, Grothe can walk away knowing he got every ounce out of the game he possibly could. He packed a lifetime into 42 games at USF after taking over as a freshman when Pat Julmiste got hurt.

He amassed 10,875 total yards, more than anyone in Big East Conference history.

He passed for 52 touchdowns and ran for 23 more. He was under center when the Bulls beat Auburn on his 21st birthday. He was there when they beat West Virginia twice, when they rose to No. 2 in the nation. Mike Canales, USF's offensive coordinator, said Grothe was doing things that reminded him of Philip Rivers - coached by Canales at North Carolina State.

"We lost a great competitor and a great player. My heart aches for him. I was devastated on Saturday. I was starting to see a lot of things in him that I saw in Philip. He was picking up the defense, recognition of coverages ... he was on his way to his best year ever," he said. "To see that happen to him is devastating."

Devastating? I can understand why Canales would use that word because this leaves us hungry for more, knowing what Grothe could have done. I've never seen someone who enjoyed playing football more than Grothe, but his perspective on this is different than many of those around him. He is obviously disappointed, but he'll save devastating to describe something more dire than an injury.

"Football is my life but at the same time it's just a game," he said. "If I looked at it any other way, I wouldn't be as upbeat as I am about this. It does suck, but at the same time it's just a new chapter in my life."

You think back to the injury. He was 2:54 from a clean getaway. The Bulls already led 28-0 and the plan all along was for Grothe to come out at halftime so freshman B.J. Daniels could play. But then Grothe got hurt.

"I went down at halftime to see him. I cried and prayed for him at the same time," Canales said. "He told me to go out there and finish the thing for him and just pray for the best. I feel so much for him. He said, 'Coach, get B.J. going.' I'll never forget that."

The business of sports can be strange at times. Grothe got his chance when another quarterback was hurt. And so it was Tuesday that USF's focus shifted to the task ahead: Saturday at 18th-ranked Florida State - the first collegiate start for Daniels. The kid will have no bigger cheerleader on the sideline than Matt Grothe.

"I'll do anything in my power to help the team out and get us where we need to be," he said.

Grothe can watch. He can advise. He can point things out to the new kid. And he can take satisfaction knowing that he did it right playing the game he loved.

"My family and everybody is actually doing worse than I am. My mom wonders how I'm taking it so well. I've got to look at it positive," he said. "I can't get down on it because there's nothing I can do to change it. I'm done playing here. Hopefully it's time to move on to bigger and better things."