Rudolph out for the season

[PANDFAN]

Eifert has amazing hands, quick and can get down field....i feel fine with him in there and Ragone prior to all the things that went wrong for him this year...even the dropped balls last game...is still good!

 

[mgriff]

I hadn't seen this thread today, and just shat a brick when Kelly said that at the Press Conference Archive. Hope Rudy recovers and comes back. I would say this almost assures he's coming back, but not 100% yet.

 

[Old Man Mike]

Ragone has been a major talent going to waste. His whole career may now be rescued---gotta believe he won't let the opportunity pass. Remember in the springtime everyone was saying that he looked so good he would take some snaps away from Rudolph. Also Eifert is apparently a blocking roadgrader. Run game and pass protection can't suffer there. As to Kamara: I don't like the "tight end" idea, but do like the "four wides" idea. Kelly's got a lot of options, even with superman in hospital repairing something that's been getting worse all season. It'd be easier on us, and Kelly, though, if the team already had the offense smoothed out. Adding new parts to a still unfinished machine is the only thing I really worry about here.

 

[jonesman]

First and foremost, get well Rudy. You have been awesome for ND over the last couple years and we thank you for the effort.

Next, it is sad that we may never see him in the gold helmet again. He has some serious decisions coming in his life. He will need to sit down with his family, coaches and NFL scouts to determine the future best for him. I would love to see him in South Bend next year, but I believe he is still NFL bound.

Any way you go, best of luck big guy!!!! You will always be an ND fav.

 

[JDAtlanta]

Thanks man! NOW THAT SPEAKS TO THE DEPTH OF ND TE's!

I hope Golic surprises all of us.

 

[Jimmy3Putt]

As strange as it may sound, this may help the Irish in the long run.
Crist will now be forced to make all of his reads instead of force feeding Rudy.
I hope that fast tracks his development as a qb.

Here's to a speedy and full recovery.

 

[Sherm Sticky]

Agree. All is not lost. Not at all. The troops will step up.

In all honesty, Kyle has been ineffective the past couple of weeks. The team is probably better off with healthy talented players, although raw, like Eifert and Ragone than a gimpy Rudolph who can barely run.

 

[Riddickulous]

6 months of recovery all but eliminates his chances of getting any opportunity at big money in the NFL Draft. He'd be a moron to declare at this point. If you're not going to be ready by March/April, you might as well stay.

Kelly is extremely high on Eifert. Hopefully he emerges when defenses key on Michael Floyd.

 

[FightingIrishLover7]

OH ****

 

[aaronb]

Bobby Burger is still on the roster.

Ragone
Eifert
Burger
Golic

Still gives us 4 DI quality TE's. 3 of which have seen tons of PT at ND.

Unfortunate, but not the end of the world.

 

[tko]

kelly will not feel sorry for himself. next man in theory applies. it's time for someone to step up, opportunity knocks. i agree with G's Big Toe, Crist will need to spread it around and hopefully more guys get involved.

 

[NDFANnSouthWest]

I almost choked when I saw the news....hind sight they should of let him heal...we have plenty of talent at the TE...maybe not at the level Rudy is when he is 100%...however has not been 100% all year. Best to him...hope he stays another year!

 

[bert2834]

With Rudy being hurt, Welch getting a redshirt and Eifert have 2 more years, does this affect Ben Koyack's decision?

 

[johnnykillz]

Tendons and ligaments along with cartilage are tissues that don't regenerate cell wise nearly as fast as muscle cells or bone cells. This injury may have not been able to be circumvented. I almost speculate it was probably a partial tear that was exaccerbated by the kid's pain threshold. He's a warrior. His work ethic will have him back to the top by next year.

I feel sorry for the scalpel that has to cut through all of the meat on that boy's hammy.

Here's what Marie had to say at yahoo answers:

No in both instances. I'm not an orthopedic surgeon, but here's how I understand it.

Tendons and cartilage are both made up mostly of collagen, which is produced by cells called chondrocytes. Chondrocytes do continue to produce collagen, which is mostly what would be needed for repair, but the problem is that there is no blood supply to cartilage (blood vessels do not travel through it), and only limited supply within a tendon. So there is no good way for nutrients to get to damaged areas of these tissues, and there is no good way for chondrocytes to travel to the areas that need to be fixed either.

Tendons and cartilage, unlike bone, don't have a mechanism for constant repair and remodeling. That is why a broken bone usually only requires a cast and the body will take care of the rest, whereas a torn tendon will require surgical repair. A bone will also eventually be just as strong as it was before it was broken. A tendon will never regain its complete strength after repair.

 

[Old Man Mike]

bert: Strange thing to bring up. Koyack wouldn't have committed to Tight End U if he didn't think he could compete. He already knew Kyle had eligibility, Alex was a good player, etc. Strange seeding of negative vibes for an ND site post [what exactly would the positive intent of that be?]

 

[IrishMoore1]

Does this mean Kyle Rudolph is staying another year?! I believe his recovery time runs into the combine period.

 

[TerryTate]

With Rudy being hurt, Welch getting a redshirt and Eifert have 2 more years, does this affect Ben Koyack's decision?

Why would he have committed then?

 

[phgreek]

Awwww, you gota be MotherF%$#ing Kidding me. The guy means so much to the "seen" offense, and the "unseen" advantage he gives because you gotta know where he is as a defense. This is sickening.

Rudy has been the man...embodied the toughness we wish was present everywhere...his leadership and football skills are just hard to come by...has helped bring this team along...

Thank You Rudy!

We'll miss you horribly. Get that thing fixed and do us proud on Sundays. ...although, we could keep a locker and a travel bag set up for ya...just in case .

 

[jonesman]

phgreek,
You are one of the only realist I have seen on here. Big Rudy is going to be playing on Sunday's next year unless this hammy takes longer than expected to heal. If he is showing good progress by spring, the NFL guys are going to be drooling.

This kid is the best TE in the country hands down. It is not even close. If the hammy is recovering nicely, there is not another question about this kid for NFL scouts. Look at the measurables:
Speed A
Hands A+
Size AA+
Heart AAA+

I would love to see him done the gold helmet next year, but it is NOT the right financial decision if he is recovering nicely from the hammy. He will get his ND degree and the risk of another injury is just not worth it.

Thanks RUDY!!!!! We all are pulling for you!!! GO IRISH

 

[NoJusticeNoPeace]

this answers if he coming back next year. sad to hear. hope he recovers and gets back to full strength.

No it doesn't. Jermaine Gresham was the number one tight end taken overall last season and he missed the whole year.

 

[IrishLax]

phgreek,
You are one of the only realist I have seen on here. Big Rudy is going to be playing on Sunday's next year unless this hammy takes longer than expected to heal. If he is showing good progress by spring, the NFL guys are going to be drooling.

This kid is the best TE in the country hands down. It is not even close. If the hammy is recovering nicely, there is not another question about this kid for NFL scouts. Look at the measurables:
Speed A
Hands A+
Size AA+
Heart AAA+

I would love to see him done the gold helmet next year, but it is NOT the right financial decision if he is recovering nicely from the hammy. He will get his ND degree and the risk of another injury is just not worth it.

Thanks RUDY!!!!! We all are pulling for you!!! GO IRISH

You make these statements like they are facts but they're completely subjective. He has great size and speed but has dropped a number of passes this year. If the draft was today, Floyd would be a second round pick and Rudolph would probably be a second rounder as well... borderline late first round.

And there is a strong chance of a lockout.

The odds are at least 70% in favor of him coming back for a senior year because of the injury + labor agreement uncertainty. If he heals up quickly and the labor disagreements get worked out I think he goes pro, but those are bigger ifs than most people realize.

 

[Bogtrotter07]

I hadn't seen this thread today, and just shat a brick when Kelly said that at the Press Conference Archive. Hope Rudy recovers and comes back. I would say this almost assures he's coming back, but not 100% yet.

Hey, mgriff; are you actually implying that you finished with the brick before you started, or are you using shat to avoid the editing for ****?

 

[Nd thruN'thru]

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

 

[DirtySecret]

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[Irish Rogue]

What an opportunity for Ragone to get some redemption. He certainly has the speed to stretch the defense. Get well Kyle, hope to see you next year.

 

[kmoose]

I'm wondering how Rudolph's injury got this far? I would be shocked to find out that he has been playing with this severe an injury, for three weeks, and none of the medical staff figured it out. So it must have gotten progressively worse. I would think that an MRI would have shown tendons hanging on to the bone by a very thin thread, and that the Medical Staff would have shut him down, to prevent further injury requiring, say.........season ending surgery?

 

[Old Man Mike]

Kelly gave us all the hint we need---Rudolph is an Iron-willed Stud. He probably wasn't totally honest with the med-staff, or was making himself believe he could play. Kelly was saying right up to the day before Pitt that they were going to have to watch Rudolph closely. Well, no amount of watching can keep a gamer from straining too hard on a play and tearing the whole damn thing.

 

[IrishandColts]

He said he hasnt thought about the NFL yet. He also said he will be back stonger then ever. I hope he stays so he can teach Ben a few things as he will probably be here when the glory days return!

 

[GreatGolson]

suddenly i dont feel so bad about that slow route he could have scored on during the pitt game, hes a real trooper, if HALF of our guys could have his toughness, manti's killer instinct, floyds freakish athletic abilities, and riddick's swagg, we would go 12-0 every year

 

[Bogtrotter07]

Kelly gave us all the hint we need---Rudolph is an Iron-willed Stud. He probably wasn't totally honest with the med-staff, or was making himself believe he could play. Kelly was saying right up to the day before Pitt that they were going to have to watch Rudolph closely. Well, no amount of watching can keep a gamer from straining too hard on a play and tearing the whole damn thing.

Good observation. What if the comments at the press conference were to prepare for the inevitable and they already shut him down during the game. I wondered why he went on about Rudolph playing with injury, and how hard it was to keep him out of the game. What if they have been watching this for weeks with the condition degrading, (it makes sense, not hard to spot from watching his play), and the press conference was to prepare Rudolph, the team, and the fan base?