T
he worst thing about Nyeem Wart-
man-White's ordeal last fall was that
it wasn't really all that bad. Not at first,
anyway.
That might sound paradoxical, but after
injuring his knee in the first game of Penn
State's 2015 season, the veteran linebacker
was still able to get around just fine. He
didn't need crutches or a scooter to make
his way across campus in the days after
he got hurt. And while that might seem
like a blessing, it felt to Wartman-White
like just the opposite. The doctors had
told him he couldn't play football until
2016, but prior to his surgery, his body
kept telling him that he could.
"Even though I tore up my knee, I was
still able to walk around," Wartman-White
said. "After a week, I was still able to walk,
and it felt good. Each day, I felt better
and better. It was as if I could play, but I
knew that I couldn't. The worst part was
knowing that I was out, but at the time,
it didn't really feel like I should be out."
The injury, which ended his redshirt
junior season on opening day, tested Wart-
man-White's resolve. But as he stated in
a widely viewed Instagram post shortly
after getting hurt, "Everything happens
for a reason. You can count on it that a
ON THE
MEND
Nyeem Wartman-White
mounts a comeback
and prepares to battle
for the Lions' MLB spot
BY MATT HERB
matt@bluewhiteonline.com
