Wake Forest WR Greg Dortch's 2017 injury happened when a pylon punctured his small intestine
Wake Forest wide receiver Greg Dortch missed the last four games of the 2017 season with an injury to his midsection. That injury was a lot more severe than Wake Forest had initially let on.
According to a story in the Athletic, Dortch suffered a punctured small intestine when he landed on a goal line pylon while diving for a touchdown.
‘I just hit it the wrong way’
Dortch said he started having sharp pains when he took breaths after he hit the pylon. Tests and scans showed that he had to be rushed to a local hospital for immediate surgery after Dortch told the team’s medical staff that he felt “hollow.”
Pylons are made from molded foam with a weight embedded at the bottom to keep them from blowing over. Dortch says the pylons used in games aren’t quite as soft as you’d think. But who expects a pylon to cause an injury?
“I just hit it the wrong way, and if I did that 10 times, it would probably only happen once,” he said.
Dortch arrived at the hospital around midnight and went in for surgery to repair the hole in his small intestine. When the 19-year-old came to, the first thing he asked was: Can I play?
He couldn’t. He had to worry about being able to eat and drink first. He couldn’t have anything for two days after surgery.
“I’ve never seen that happen before, that a guy gets injured on the pylon,” Wake Forest coach Dave Clawson said at ACC media days.
Dortch scored 9 TDs in 8 games in 2017
Dortch has made a full recovery and is expected to be the top option in the Wake Forest passing game once again. He had 53 catches for 722 yards in the eight games he played in 2017. The Demon Deacons are in a tough ACC Atlantic Division but a 6-win season would get the team to a bowl game for a third-straight year.
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Nick Bromberg is a writer for Yahoo Sports.
Follow @NickBromberg on Twitter
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