Texas A&M senior guard Derrick Roland suffered a gruesome leg
injury in the 19th-ranked Aggies' 73-64 loss at No. 22 Washington
on Tuesday night and was in surgery at a Seattle hospital early
Wednesday morning.
Coach Mark Turgeon said Roland broke his tibia and fibula
bones in his lower right leg.
"He's in surgery now," Turgeon said immediately after the
game.
Turgeon then rushed out of the arena to the hospital across
town. He referred all other questions to top assistant Scott
Spinelli.
"We expect him to make a full recovery," Spinelli said,
though he conceded Roland's college career may be over —
barring some unexpected turn of events such as a medical redshirt
for another season.
That will likely be difficult to obtain. NCAA rules include
guidance that a medical hardship waiver may be granted for a fifth
year of eligibility for a player injured before he has played in 20
percent of his team's games in a season. Roland has played in all
11 of Texas A&M's 29 regular-season games so far.
"God willing, you don't know," Spinelli said.
Aggies team spokesman Colin Killian, who was traveling with
the team, said Turgeon, staff members and some players were at the
hospital early Wednesday waiting for word from the surgery. The
team was due to board its bus about 5 a.m. PST to begin its flight
home.
Turgeon considered leaving the game to join his player at the
hospital before staying. The scene recalled the similar injury
former Washington Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann sustained live
on national television during a Monday night NFL game in 1985.
The Aggies gathered at their bench for a tearful prayer for
Roland during a 10-minute delay to get him onto a stretcher and
into an ambulance. Immediately after the game resumed, Washington
(8-2) went on a decisive 15-4 run.
Roland, one of the leading defenders in the Big 12 Conference
and the Aggies' second-leading scorer, crashed hard to the court
with 17:30 left in the game after jumping under the basket.
Turgeon ran on the court while play continued at the other
end.
Roland's teammates were distraught. Leading scorer and fellow
senior Donald Sloan, a childhood friend of Roland's from Dallas,
cried as he buried his head in his jersey and was helped to the
bench.
Four University of Washington doctors and trainers rushed to
Roland, who remained on his back, arms over his eyes.
After about 10 minutes, he was removed on the stretcher
wearing an air cast and loaded into an ambulance that took him
across town to Harborview Medical Center. Roland, who scored a
career-high 21 points earlier this season at Southern Methodist,
was alert inside the ambulance. He was holding his head up as an IV
was started in his arm and the ambulance drove away from the back
of the arena.
Barry Davis, the Aggies' director of student of student and
athlete development, was at Roland's side inside the ambulance.
Davis was talking on his cell phone as medical personnel treated
Roland.
Some Aggies were still crying after the game.
"We said a prayer as a team," Spinelli said. "Lots of guys
were in tears. They're in tough shape right now."
