By Andy Hamilton
Iowa City Press-Citizen
The Iowa wrestling room had cleared out after Tuesday afternoon’s practice when Matt Fields started his solitary road to recovery wearing a brace over his injured right knee.
The show goes on for the Hawkeyes. The rehabilitation starts alone for their sophomore heavyweight.
Multiple examinations during the past two days confirmed what Fields and the Hawkeyes feared Sunday: His season is over. Fields tore the anterior cruciate ligament, the medial collateral ligament and sustained a bone bruise in his knee when his foot got caught in the mat as Minnesota’s Cole Konrad tried finishing a shot.
“I didn’t know what ligament it was, but I knew it was something major, “Fields said. “I heard it pop, it was pretty loud and (Konrad) heard it, too. The trainers saw it happen. Everybody knew it was something serious.”
The significance of the injury hit Fields when he thought about how quickly half of his promising collegiate career has passed. He has two years of eligibility remaining, plus a redshirt year available.
Iowa coach Jim Zalesky said the Hawkeyes would explore the possibility of petitioning for medical hardship waiver to give Fields an extra season of eligibility. That could be a long shot because the former blue-chip recruit from North Cedar has competed in nearly half of the competition dates on Iowa’s schedule.
“It’s a wasted year with nothing to show for it, “said Fields, who was 15-6 and ranked sixth. “It’s just so frustrating knowing you worked so hard, but you have nothing to show for it.”
Fields will have surgery scars to show for his past year of medical misfortune.
After finishing one victory shy of earning All-America honors last year as a true freshman, Fields underwent hip surgery in April. The operation gave him a greater range of movement in his left leg, but it kept him on crutches and off the mat for much of the offseason.
The two-time state champion returned to full strength ahead of schedule and opted not to use a redshirt this season. He said he didn’t want to miss the opportunity to wrestle Oklahoma State senior Steve Mocco, a two-time NCAA champion.
“It’s tough, “Zalesky said. “It’s one of those things you have to go through and fight through. It’s not something he saw happening, but we talk about how sometimes you face adversity and have to fight through it.”
Losing Fields is cushioned by the presence of junior Ryan Fuller, a 2004 NCAA qualifier. Fuller compiled a 5-4 record before Fields returned to the lineup in December.
“It’s time for Fuller to step up, and he’s got his chance now, “Iowa senior 184-pounder Paul Bradley said. “He’s got something to prove, and I think he’ll come out with a little more fire the second time around.”
Meanwhile, Fields is facing two-to-four weeks of rehabilitation before he undergoes surgery and then a six-month recovery before he gets back on the mat.
“I’ve got to be a little more serious from here on out, “he said. “If I need to redshirt next year, regardless of what I think, I need to go by what my body tells me.”
Reach Andy Hamilton at 339-7368 or [email protected].
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