March 19, 2012
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By John Denton, Knights Insider
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Just four months removed from tearing a knee ligament, A.J. Bouye is back on the football field trying to negotiate a bulky knee brace and wavering stability in the joint.
But those obstacles are nothing compared to the ones in the senior cornerback's mind right now. It's the mental hurdles that pose the biggest issue for Bouye, who is attempting a speedy return so that he can step into quite possibly the most important position on UCF's defense.
When he lays his head down at night and closes his eyes, Bouye can still see the UAB quarterback's helmet going into his left knee. That play not only ruined a dazzling interception near the goal line, but it also ended his season seven games into the year. Fast forward now to March after a surgery and hundreds of hours of rehabilitation and Bouye is having to re-learn how to trust a knee he fears could twist at any moment.
Bouye, a 6-foot, 186-pound senior, is being held out of contact drills this spring. Instead, he's using the 14 practices and the April 14 Black and Gold Spring Game as a means of shaking the mental hurdles that come with any serious injury.
``As far as the physical part of it, it's going well. But the mental part of it is hard trying to come in here every day and do it and not knowing if my knee is going to be OK,'' Bouye said. ``But I have trainers like Mary (Vander Heiden) who keep me up. I just want to get it right so that I don't have to worry about it when the season rolls around.''
Bouye knows that he needs to be 100 percent by the time that fall camp rolls around because he is being looked at to replace standout cornerback Josh Robinson, who opted for the NFL Draft following a stellar career at UCF. Bouye will be attempting to make a position transition, moving from boundary corner (short side of the field) to field corner (wide side of the field).
Bouye still talks to Robinson regularly, looking for tips on his new position. And Robinson is also helping Bouye overcome the injury to his knee that ended his junior season.
``I'm just trying to get the job done over there and I talked to Josh (Robinson) the other day about it. Field (corner) is fine, and I want to make plays and prove that I can be just like Josh. I want to get to where he's going,'' Bouye said. ``My technique has to be right because there's a lot more field to work with over there. I have the speed and everything, but it's just getting the technique down. Josh just told me that he knows that I can do it. It's just up to me now to do the work and get the job done.''
UCF head coach George O'Leary, whose squad returns to the practice field on Tuesday, is confident Bouye will be fully healed and ready to return by the start of the season. Even though he's not fully healed, O'Leary likes having returning players such as Bouye back on the field in non-contact drills so that he can get plenty of ``mental repetitions.''
``He'll be ready for the preseason, no question. Those guys can practice now, but there's no reason to taking a chance now (with contact),'' O'Leary said. ``They're getting all of their reps but they're not in contact and they are just tagging off. They'll be back for the preseason (in August).''
The Knights are eager to get Bouye back because of his playmaking skills. In just seven games last season he had 21 tackles, two interceptions, three pass breakups and five passes defensed. He had a season-best six tackles against Marshall and his interception against Boston College helped the Knights seal their best victory of the season.
His other interception, however, ended his season prematurely. Facing UAB, Bouye went high into the air and snagged an interception and has designs on returning the pick 100 yards for a touchdown. But with only one man to beat, the quarterback buried his helmet into the inside of Bouye's left knee. He initially thought the injury was just a sprain, but doctors soon informed him in the locker room that there was a torn ligament and his season was done.
``I was trying to take it to the house,'' Bouye said with a laugh. ``I was looking for the quarterback and the next thing that I knew he threw his helmet into my knee and it tore (the ligament) on impact.''
UCF senior safety Kemal Ishmael admitted recently that it's strange to look over and not see Robinson manning the field cornerback position, but he said he has full confidence in Bouye's abilities.
Bouye has certainly put in the work to get back on the field. In addition to talking to former Knight A.J. Guyton and current wide receiver Rob Calabrese about their experiences recovering from knee injuries, Bouye usually spends an additional two hours a day getting rehabilitation on his knee. He knows the offseason will be a big one for him as he tries to get back fully healed.
``I'm probably 70 to 75 percent. I'm just four months out, but I actually feel good,'' he said. ``I'm good at running and my balance is there now. I just keep telling myself that it will be stronger when I come all the way back. I have to work really hard in rehab and stay in it. I'll work on my technique all summer, do extra drills and extra running and make sure I'm ready. I'm going to get back to 100 percent, well, 110 percent actually.'' \ As for the mental hurdles, Bouye is confident those will fade in time. At least that's what others keep telling him, but he knows he'll have to make the leap on his own.
``I've talked to Rob Calabrese and A.J. Guyton about it. I saw A.J. when I went back home and he told me it's more of a mental thing than a physical thing,'' Bouye said. ``Once I realize that it's going to be stronger than before I'll be all right. I'll keep working at it.''
John Denton's Knights Insider appears on UCFAthletics.com several times a week. E-mail John at jdenton@athletics.ucf.edu.