BY NATE KOTISSO | THE MONITOR
When Mercedes senior linebacker Roger Adame III broke his right arm during the team’s season opener at Corpus Christi Calallen, surgery and rehabilitation were expected to take up to eight weeks.
But on Monday, Adame III took the first step to getting back into game action, participating in limited contact practice drills for the first time since the injury.
“When I let him know he was going to be practicing, his eyes lit up,” Mercedes coach (and Adame III’s father) Roger Adame Jr. said. “He had already texted me twice the day of telling me he couldn’t wait to get back out there. He also needed a new mouthpiece, because he didn’t know what happened to the last one.”
Adame III received clearance from his orthopedic surgeon in Corpus Christi on Sept. 26. The doctor gave him the go-ahead to begin working out in the weight room without the cast on his right arm. When he practices, the cast goes back on.
Since then, the Adames have switched to a local orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Michael Sander of Weslaco, eliminating the Mercedes-to-Corpus Christi commute. Adame III’s first appointment with Sander will be Thursday morning.
“We still need to see how his arm feels after these practices,” Adame Jr. said. “I think by Wednesday, we’ll have a better idea as far as how comfortable he feels and our trainers feel.”
Adame Jr. said Thursday’s appointment could determine if Adame III will take the field for Mercedes (3-1) against Brownsville Veterans (3-1) in a key home district game Friday night.
“If we go to the doctor and he has some trouble during practices, then of course we’ll wait,” Adame Jr. said. “But if Roger feels good during the week, his X-ray looks good and the doctor feels good about it, then he’ll play.”
If Adame III is cleared to play Friday, Adame Jr. said Adame III’s playing time will be decided on closer to kickoff.