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LB Mike D'Andrea (official thread)

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Posted on Thu, Aug. 31, 2006

Knee injury ends LB D'Andrea's career

RUSTY MILLER

Associated Press

COLUMBUS, Ohio - The once-promising college career of Ohio State linebacker Mike D'Andrea has ended because of ongoing knee problems.
Coach Jim Tressel confirmed Thursday that D'Andrea would no longer try to play for the Buckeyes. D'Andrea, scheduled to graduate with a degree in consumer affairs in March, was not available for comment.
D'Andrea - not future two-time All-American A.J. Hawk, who was recruited at the same time - was considered the prize when he signed with the Buckeyes in 2002.
"He was big, strong, fast and explosive," Tressel said.
At 6-foot-3 and 248 pounds, D'Andrea also had a mean streak that seemed to mark him as the next in a line of great Ohio State linebackers that includes Chris Spielman, Marcus Marek, Pepper Johnson, Randy Gradishar, Rick Middleton, Bob Brudzinski, Andy Katzenmoyer, Bobby Carpenter and Hawk.
D'Andrea was selected by numerous publications as the nation's best linebacker while totaling 140 tackles as a senior at Avon Lake High School outside Cleveland.
He worked his way up to second team behind Matt Wilhelm on Ohio State's 2002 national championship team, playing in 13 games, totaling seven tackles.
"He was everything we'd hoped he'd be," Tressel said. "A very instinctive football player. And that's why you feel so bad."
D'Andrea's next season, he rotated in and out of the lineup before separating a shoulder against Michigan State that kept him out of the final three games. He had 24 tackles.
D'Andrea hurt his right knee Sept. 24, 2004, in practice during the Buckeyes' bye week. He was never the same, playing in just seven games the past two years.
This season, he was penciled in as a backup, though most felt that anything he was able to contribute would be a bonus. The Buckeyes play Saturday against Northern Illinois with two sophomores and a fifth-year senior who hardly played last season starting at linebacker.
D'Andrea will undergo knee surgery within the next two weeks for "a better quality of life," Tressel said.


DDN

Another surgery to end linebacker D'Andrea's OSU career

By Doug Harris
Staff Writer

Friday, September 01, 2006
COLUMBUS — Fifth-year senior linebacker Mike D'Andrea, perhaps the jewel of Ohio State's star-studded 2002 recruiting class, has ended his bid to come back from a knee injury this season.
D'Andrea, who tore his ACL in the fourth game of the 2004 campaign, will have another surgery in the next few weeks but is not expected to play again for the Buckeyes.
"He did all he could do from a rehab standpoint and gave every effort he could give," coach Jim Tressel said. "He just has to go on to the next option."
D'Andrea was considered the best linebacker prospect in the nation as a senior at Avon Lake High School in northeast Ohio, and he started for the Buckeyes as a sophomore in 2003.
But he sat out the final three games that year after having shoulder surgery and has been hampered by injuries since then.
"When you have to come to the understanding that you may not play the game you love anymore, it's tough," Tressel said.

CPD

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[FONT=arial,sans-serif]Another injury ends D’Andrea’s OSU career
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6:47 p.m.

By DOUG LESMERISES

Plain Dealer Reporter

Columbus— Linebacker Mike D’Andrea’s Ohio State career is over. Buckeye coach Jim Tressel said today that the former Avon Lake star is expected to have another knee surgery within the next two weeks.

“He did all he could do from rehab standpoint,’’ Tressel said, “and he gave every effort he could give. He has to go on the next option.’’

Tressel said he hopes surgery could allow D’Andrea to down the line take a shot at the NFL. But the injury that occurred in practice on Sept. 24, 2004, has already done its damage.

The Plain Dealer’s 2001 Defensive Player of the Year as a senior with the Shoremen, D’Andrea played in every game as a freshman for the 2002 national championship team. He played 10 games as a sophomore before hurting his shoulder, but has played only four minutes in the last 21 OSU games since his first knee surgery.

D’Andrea practiced last December, then sat out spring practice and felt good during summer conditioning. He practiced on a limited basis when preseason camp started a month ago, but it didn’t take long for the Buckeyes to see he wouldn’t be able to play this year.

“We were certainly hoping, as much for his sake as ours,’’ Tressel said. “But we knew he had some battles to overcome. Football is a different game than the weight room and conditioning tests. There’s a lot more stress on the body, and his situation couldn’t handle it.’’ [/FONT]
 
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Dispatch

More surgery to end D’Andrea’s career
Friday, September 01, 2006
Ken Gordon
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Mike D’Andrea represented Avon Lake High School’s finest, a state champion in shot put and discus and a Parade All-American football player.
So when D’Andrea started playing at Ohio State that fall, the Shoremen coaching staff watched eagerly from afar.
"We would always turn on the TV to see if he was on the field," coach Dave Dlugosz said. "Boy, we all had visions of glory. We had visions he would be a three or four-year starter down there."
Those visions were clouded by two major injuries, first to a shoulder and then to D’Andrea’s right knee.
The final shade on his Ohio State career was drawn yesterday, when coach Jim Tressel said D’Andrea will have knee surgery within the next two weeks, wiping out his fifth and final season with the Buckeyes.
That ends almost a two-year struggle to come back from the knee injury, suffered in practice on Sept. 24, 2004. Since then, D’Andrea has played briefly in only four games.
"He had a long journey and he’s done everything you could possibly do," Tressel said. "Now he just has to go on to the next option."
He was the first option in the 2002 linebacker class, rated above fellow linebacker recruits A.J. Hawk and Bobby Carpenter, both of whom were first-round NFL draft picks in April.
D’Andrea, 22, played as a true freshman on the Buckeyes’ national championship team, but a shoulder injury ended his sophomore season. He began 2004 as a starter and looked good before a knee injury.
"He was a dominant high school football player," Tressel said. "Big, strong, fast, explosive. When he got here, he was everything we’d hoped he would be, (a) very instinctive football player. And that’s why you feel so bad that he isn’t going to be able to play at Ohio State."
D’Andrea played a few special-teams snaps last season before shutting it down.
This year, he was held out of spring drills and did little during the summer in hopes the knee would respond. It didn’t. After the first week of fall camp, it was apparent this would be the end.
"It was just an agreement by all," Tressel said. "When you get so much swelling, so much pain, and so many times you have to go back to the drawing board, I think it was just a group decision."
D’Andrea was not available for comment. Tressel said he was on track to graduate in March.
In 30 career games, including four starts, D’Andrea had 44 tackles, one sack and one forced fumble.
Dlugosz said the same potential that followed D’Andrea from Avon Lake to Columbus also made it much tougher on the player when injury finally did him in.
"The kid was under a microscope in Columbus and there was a sense of, ‘He’s hurt, he’s letting us down,’ " Dlugosz said. "Believe me, that kid would have cut his leg off if that would have enabled him to be on the field. That’s what hurts so much.
"Some things in life you just can’t predict and you don’t prepare yourself for. All of a sudden, as a young college kid, you have to face up to that type of situation. We feel horrible for Mike."
[email protected]
 
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Surgery to end D'Andrea's career
JASON LLOYD, Morning Journal Writer
09/01/2006
http://www.zwire.com/site/printerFriendly.cfm?brd=1699&dept_id=46370&newsid=17138741

Mike D'Andrea has spent the better part of three years fighting knee and shoulder injuries. Finally, he's had enough.


D'Andrea will not play football for Ohio State this year, instead opting for a third surgery on his troublesome right knee that will end his college career.


''Mike is probably going to have surgery here in the next week or two, just for a better quality of life,'' Buckeyes coach Jim Tressel said. ''He just did all he could do from a rehab standpoint, gave every effort he could give, and now he has to go on to the next option.''

D'Andrea was unavailable for comment yesterday.

He finishes his career at Ohio State with 44 tackles, including 6.5 tackles for a loss and one sack. He played in 13 games as a freshman on the national championship team in 2002, but was limited to 17 games since. He took a medical redshirt last year in hopes of returning healthy this fall.

''We knew that he had some battles to overcome, that he had had a long journey and done everything you could possibly do,'' Tressel said. ''We were hoping when he ended this summer feeling pretty good that it might be the ticket.''

D'Andrea's injury woes began in 2003, when he tried playing through a torn labrum before succumbing to surgery after 10 games.

He started the first four games of 2004 before tearing his ACL in practice. It's an injury from which he was never able to fully recover. Finally, within the last couple of weeks, D'Andrea, Tressel and the medical staff got together and decided it was over.

''When you get so much swelling, you get so much pain and so many times you have to go back to the drawing board, I think it was just a group decision,'' Tressel said.

D'Andrea participated in bowl practices for last year's Fiesta Bowl, but sat out spring ball with the hope of being healthy in the fall.

He said in April he wasn't pushing himself like he had in the past, instead listening to his body rather than watching the clock.

''There have been frustrating times,'' D'Andrea said then. ''I'm not going to lie.''

D'Andrea came to Ohio State out of Avon Lake, where he was one of the crown jewels of a star-studded recruiting class. Most recruiting experts had him listed as one of the top three linebacker prospects in the country. D'Andrea was often referred to as a physical freak, with the ability to run faster and jump higher than most other 6-3, 250 pound linebackers.

''He was a dominant high school football player. He was big, strong, fast, explosive,'' Tressel said. ''When he got here, that's what he was. He came in and played some as a true freshman. He was everything we'd hoped he'd be -- a very instinctive football player. And that's why you feel so bad that he isn't going to be able to play at Ohio State. I still have hopes he can play at the next level. If somehow we can figure out a way to get him back to himself physically, he can.''

D'Andrea is on pace to graduate in March with a degree in consumer affairs.

''All of us feel strongly about the commitment he's made and the impression he made when he played,'' Tressel said. ''But I'm sure when you have to come to the understanding that you may not play the game you love anymore, (it's hard).''

[email protected]
 
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When one stops to put things in perspective that being a scholar-athlete is the way to learn to earn a living, by getting a degree, MDA has done everything that he should. Some look at being a football player as a ticket to the pay-for-play league, and if they don't make it, they are woefully behind in their graduating pace. And, truth be known, very few colleges keep open the door for a 'former' athlete, once their eligibility is used up. Not fair, but reality. So they are forced to take jobs where the accolades are not there. Hard for a former elite athlete that has had everyone 'blow smoke up their six' telling them how good they are (we all know examples of those athletes that BELIEVE their poop doesn't stink).

MDA, you will always be a Buckeye. And more importantly, your office wall will have an OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY sheepskin (diploma) hanging on it. What you do in the 'real world' with that diploma is still conjecture, but with the tenacity you have shown, you will be successful if you put forth the effort to succeed that you have shown on the gridiron.

The Buckeye Nation is truly sorry that you were not a star on the football field, but you can be a star in life. Continue with your education, and utilize it to do something that you love. That is the truest measure of success - how you affect the lives of the young people around you, and what you give back to the system.

Best wishes, and :gobucks3: :gobucks4: :banger: and that is to all the athletes, the flute players, and the rest of the students at our fair university. ( I apologize for sounding 'preachy' and I know, you already have a father).
 
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D?Andrea Working Out After Time on Crutches

BrutusReport.com


D?Andrea Working Out After Time on Crutches


Mike D?Andrea continues to be a part of the team despite having to leave football after a 5th year of eligibility didn?t go as originally planned for the standout High School linebacker.

By Steve Patterson

Mike D'Andrea came to Columbus as the nationally ranked #1 linebacker in the class of 2002. There were a number of other linebackers drafted the same year, including A.J. Hawk, Bobby Carpenter, and Stan White Jr. But Mike worked his way up the depth chart to finish the season in the two deep behind starting middle linebacker Matt Wilhelm. Mike told us about the best part of his football career at Ohio State, 'The highlight of my career was winning the national championship.'

Mike's career went downhill from that point. 'Yes, I did get the chance that I wanted to get here, but unfortunately I wasn't able to have the kind of success that I wanted due to injury.' His sophomore year, he played in the first 10 games totaling 24 tackles with 14 solo tackles. But against Michigan State he was sidelined with a separated shoulder and could not play the final three games. In 2004, Mike hurt his knee during the bye week and missed the final 8 games of the year. 2005 was almost completely missed to due knee problems expect a couple of minutes in 3 games in the middle of the season. He sat out Spring ball 2006 as a precaution and was hopeful to be 100% when fall camp came. But his knee proved undependable and his career came to an end before the season began. 'The final medical problem in my knee was arthritis, that caused constant swelling whenever I would try to run.' Mike told us.

Mike is still involved with the team, attending practice, and working out. 'Yes I'm involved with the team. I haven't been around as much recently because I was just on crutches for 6 weeks, but I'm now going to practice and still working out there.' And he thinks the Buckeye's are right on track to win another National Championship during his tenure. 'I see us winning the national championship as long as we keep playing the way that we are right now.'

Mike is a Consumer Affairs major and is on schedule to complete his undergraduate degree. 'I'm not sure of my long term goals, but for right now I'm just going to focus on getting my knee better every day and graduating after winter quarter.'
 
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One can only hope that Hiley does get his life together and make a productive stab at a career in football from the relative obscurity of Ashland.

As for D'Andrea - coaching in some form or other seems his most likely option for continued involvement in the game.
 
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Dispatch

OHIO STATE NOTEBOOK
Watching won?t hurt D?Andrea
Monday, January 08, 2007
Ken Gordon and Tim May
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

GLENDALE, Ariz. ? Tonight will mark the 33 rd time in the past 50 games that Mike D?Andrea has watched from the sideline.
 
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