Andrews – It has been a long road back to the football field for Wildcats running back Austin Martin.
After suffering a knee injury in February 2020 and undergoing surgery that September, Martin was cleared in June. He has hit the ground running, forming a dynamic duo in Andrews’ backfield with fellow junior Isaac Weaver.
“It was hard sitting out that year,” Martin said. “Seeing everybody be able to play and me not to be able to play, I’m just glad to be back playing and prove that I can be the good player people think I am.”
It started on the basketball court, where Martin broke a bone in his left knee during the Smoky Mountain Conference junior varsity championship game. He tried to delay surgery, but the pain didn’t go away and he was unable to get through summer workouts in July 2020.
Martin underwent surgery on Sept. 22, 2020, to repair an osteochondritis dissecans lesion. An OCD lesion occurs when a small part of the bone begins to separate from the surrounding region due to lack of blood supply and the piece of bone and cartilage surrounding it begin to crack and loosen, according to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons.
After the surgery, Martin was in crutches for two months, and a brace for one month after that. He started rehabbing during that time, which was mainly a lot of stretching and running to help build back strength. The last step was weightlifting, which included a lot of one-legged squats and lunges to make sure his left knee could get more equal to his right knee.
Though he wasn’t able to play last spring, Martin was still able to contribute to Andrews’ first winning season since 2011. Head coach James Phillips said Martin has a good football IQ, and was able to pick up opposing team’s tendencies on the field. It’s something Phillips thinks he picked up from his dad, Andrews alum Jamie Martin, who was the same way on the field.
“There’s times on the field where we’re on offense, and you’ll see him run over to the hashes or numbers and say, ‘Hey, run this’ or ‘Hey they’re doing this,’ ” Phillips said.
This year, Martin, has taken more of a load than expected. Weaver has dealt with a lingering injury this season, and after back-to-back four touchdown games to open the fall, wasn’t able to take a full load again until Oct. 8 against Swain County. Martin took over primary running back duties, ran for 100 yards in four straight games before being limited to 50 against Cherokee.
At 5-foot-10 and 220 pounds, Martin is hard to bring down, and it usually takes more than one defender to do so. He’s also hard to catch in the open field when he gets going, with touchdowns runs of 30 yards or more in the Wildcats first two conference games.
“He’s kind of like a bear,” Phillips said. “When he needs to move and needs to do some damage he can do it.”
Martin’ is one of the main reasons Andrews was 5-0 for the first time since 1963, though the Wildcats have a tough finish to end the season in a deep Smoky Mountain Conference. No matter what happens, Martin is definitely enjoying being back on the field.
“Waiting for a long time, it just drove me crazy,” Martin said. “I was ready to be back.”