It Could Be a Hit-and-Miss Season : Villa Park’s Pearsall Hopes to Rehabilitate Injured Knee, Play for USC This Fall

Big-time hitter that he is, Grant Pearsall understood the risks. You live by the big hit, you . . . well, you know how the saying goes.

But perspective doesn’t make season-threatening injuries any easier to deal with. Pearsall, a senior safety at USC and a former standout at Villa Park High, is out of the Trojans’ immediate plans because of that thing he does so well. The irony would be enough to overwhelm Pearsall, if he didn’t already have so much else on his mind.

“Hitting is what I have to do out there, that’s my job, but I also love it,” Pearsall said. “You can’t worry about getting injured or you can’t do your job the right way. You just have to deal with whatever happens, but I guess it can be dangerous.”

For the first time, Pearsall realizes just how dangerous. Pearsall suffered torn anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in his left knee during spring practice at USC on April 5. The injury occurred after Pearsall landed awkwardly making a tackle and a teammate landed on top of his knee.

“It was really just kind of a freak accident,” Pearsall said. “I was breaking on a guy to make a tackle when it happened.

“My knee got sandwiched, but I wasn’t sure I was hurt at first because it all happened so fast. But it didn’t take me too long to figure out that this was bad and I had a pretty big problem.”

Surgery repaired the physical damage, but Pearsall’s psyche was another matter. From youth football to high school to college, Pearsall had managed to avoid major injuries. This was definitely not a challenge Pearsall wanted to experience.

“After the surgery, the doctor told me that everything looked OK and that I should be fine,” Pearsall said. “But you never really know until you get back and you always wonder, even if only in the back of your mind, if you will make it back all the way.

“You hear stories all the time about guys blowing out knees and then losing something. Since I had never been through anything like this before, I think it was kind of natural to be concerned--and even a little scared.”

Pearsall leaned--heavily--on his family, friends and coaches after the injury. With their support, Pearsall’s fears steadily disappeared and his thoughts became focused on his rehabilitation.

Although initially expected to miss the entire 1997 season, Pearsall now hopes to play. He said his rehabilitation is going much better and faster than his doctor and coaches thought possible.

“My doctor recently told me he has never seen anybody recover so fast,” Pearsall said. “It was supposed to be a year minimum before I was supposed to get back to full speed again, but I starting running two weeks ago. Everyone is pretty optimistic about me playing this year.”

However, Pearsall knows he still has a long way to go. He is only jogging lightly and hasn’t been given doctor’s clearance to test his knee in football-related maneuvers or hard running.

It’s highly unlikely Pearsall will be ready for the Trojans’ training camp, which opens Aug. 13, meaning he will at least miss the beginning of the season. Pearsall said he plans to redshirt if he can’t make it back for most of the season.

“Coach [John] Robinson and I have talked about that, and he told me he doesn’t want me to waste my final season if I can only play in a few games,” Pearsall said. “Right now, though, I’m working like I plan to play this season. I’ve been looking forward to this season for so long, I really don’t want to miss anything.”

Pearsall, 21, has been a solid contributor since arriving at USC, playing in every game since his freshman season. He cracked the Trojans starting lineup as a junior, making 80 tackles and intercepting one pass while playing strong safety.

In the process, Pearsall developed a reputation as one of the Pacific 10 Conference’s biggest hitters. He won the Trojans’ award for the best hit of the season, proving he packs quite a punch at 6 feet 1 and 210 pounds.

His ability didn’t catch USC coaches by surprise. As a senior at Villa Park, Pearsall rushed for 1,606 yards and 17 touchdowns. He also had 85 tackles and four interceptions.

Despite his breakthrough season as a junior at USC, Pearsall said the season was not fulfilling because the Trojans were a major disappointment. Fresh off a Rose Bowl victory over Northwestern, the Trojans believed they would contend for the national championship. But they struggled to a 6-6 season with no bowl game.

“That was the most difficult thing I’ve ever been involved in,” Pearsall said. “At a great school like USC, you’re constantly reminded of the tradition of the program and what that means. We didn’t live up to that tradition and that really hurts.

“A lot of guys thought it would be easy, like we could just snap our fingers and go back to the Rose Bowl. But the attitude is great around here now, and everyone is dedicated to working hard to get what we want again. That’s why I’m doing everything I can to make it back.”