CSUN Lineman Recovering After Auto Accident

Rod Weber, a part-time starter on defense for the Cal State Northridge football team, is in the intensive-care unit at Verdugo Hospital recovering from injuries he suffered in a car accident.

Weber, 23, fell asleep while driving home to Northridge early Wednesday morning after visiting family and friends in San Bernardino, according to his mother, Anne.

The car carrying the 6-3, 255-pound defensive tackle plowed into the back of a semi-truck heading west on the 210 Freeway near the northeast end of the San Fernando Valley.

Weber underwent 3 hours of surgery to stop internal bleeding, during which a section of his large intestine was removed, his mother said.

“The doctor said his seat belt saved him,” Anne Weber said. “He said, ‘If it weren’t for that belt, we wouldn’t be standing here talking right now.’ ”

Weber, a junior, is expected to recover completely and continue playing football next season. Northridge will conclude its season Saturday at Southern Utah State.