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Playing through the pain
Poland senior Bonarigo returns sooner than expected
POLAND
Pro football plays have had memorable monikers — “The Fumble,” “The Drive,” “The Catch.”
The Poland High School team could start a list with “The Return.”
On Aug. 27, Poland won a game, but lost a player. During the first defensive series against Marlington, Joe Bonarigo was chasing quarterback Chris Pennell when the defensive end felt a pop in his left knee.
Bonarigo fell to the turf of Baird Mitchell Field and knew something was wrong. After a team trainer came out, Bonarigo gingerly went to the sidelines.
“I like to walk off the field on my own,” the 6-foot-4, 235-pound senior said in a mildly macho way.
The preliminary opinion was a torn ACL.
“It was a mix of emotions,” Bonarigo said. “No athlete wants to hear that. I didn’t know how to handle it. I didn’t know why it happened to me. I was having a lot of fun, loving it, then this happens.”
In the previous two seasons, Bonarigo suffered injuries. He tore the labrum (ligament) in his hip during conditioning in July and missed the whole season. In his junior year, Bonarigo broke the thumb on his right hand and sat out another game.
He took his helmet off and was told that he was “done for the day.” The two-way player was stunned as he sat on the bench for about 10 minutes.
“It felt like a dream because I spent a lot of time working for the season and, all of a sudden, it’s gone,” Bonarigo said. “Teammates came up to say, ‘We’ll get it done for you.’ Then I went in the locker room and took my equipment off.”
A second opinion confirmed that Bonarigo had a torn ACL and torn meniscus and was out for the season. But he never underwent a surgery scheduled for Sept. 29. Instead, on Oct. 2, Bonarigo was participating in pre-game drills at Struthers High.
Joe’s mother, Tina, said that she and her husband, Joe, weighed their son’s doctor’s advice carefully, but leaned toward any option that would put their son back on the field with a reasonable semblance of safety.
“We wanted to make sure he [doctor] exhausted every avenue because Joe put in so much hard work [preparing for his senior season],” she said. “The doctor said that if Joe wants to play that bad, let’s put a brace on and see what he could tolerate.”
In physical therapy sessions, Bonarigo went through agility drills to ensure that the brace would hold and support his knee.
“He wanted to be out there,” Tina Bonarigo said. “Any down he can play is better than not playing at all. That’s how we looked at it.”
Bonarigo’s dad, who played for former Poland coaches Mike Simington and Reid Lamport, understands that risk is possible anytime an athlete takes the field.
“In this situation, the ACL is not going to be hurt any worse, he said. “The brace does the job that the ligament did. This is something he wants to try.
“It’s painful, but it’s pain he could tolerate.”
Against the Wildcats, he was on the line of scrimmage as a tight end for 30 snaps as Poland won its sixth straight game.
“There’s pain, but only after the game and after practice,” said Bonarigo, who returned to the field in a uniform for the Howland game on Sept. 18, although he didn’t play.
A week later, against Edgewood, Bonarigo played a dozen downs, more on defense than offense.
“Once he got his brace and got cleared for the Howland game, he dressed but didn’t play,” Poland head coach Mark Brungard said of the cautious — and sensible — approach.
“They don’t want me pulling a whole lot, even with my brace,” Bonarigo said of the decision not to play offensive guard because that position could pose unnecessary danger.
“Remarkable,” is how Brungard described Bonarigo’s return. “I’ve never had another situation when a kid came back and played. Just to see him do as well as he did [blocking], I’m pretty amazed to be honest with you.”
Upon his return to drills, Bonarigo was anxious prior to his first attempt at planting the left foot and cutting on it.
“The last time I did that I was hurt, but I had to see if I could do it,” Bonarigo said. “After that, I had a big smile on my face and knew I could play. I was happy to know I could get back out there.”
Brungard took his cue from the family.
“The brace will provide stabilization and he was told that if he can stand a bit of pain and discomfort, he can play on it and get surgery at the end of the season. That’s the plan.”
Despite knowing that he’s not superman, Bonarigo remains tenable.
“I don’t even notice my knee [being] hurt; I forget about it sometimes.”
“The Return” may never qualify for a highlights hall of fame, but it’s helping to salvage Bonarigo’s senior season.
In his mind, “The Return” is better than “The End.”