Person's Return a Bright Spot in Louisville Loss

The sophomore running back scored a touchdown Saturday in his first game since suffering an injury on Sept. 28

Ricky Person Jr.'s season looked as if it might be over when he was taken from the field on a cart at Florida State on Sept. 28 with an inflatable cast on his left leg.

But as serious as the injury turned out to be, it could have been worse.

The silver lining to Person's dark cloud was that x-rays of his injured leg came back negative, showing no break. From there it was just a matter of time. That time turned out to be Saturday, when the sophomore running back made his long-awaited return in NC State's 34-20 loss to Louisville at Carter-Finley Stadium.

Person's contribution was limited to only four carries for 10 yards and two catches for 28 yards and a touchdown in a losing effort. That didn't make his performance any less satisfying, considering everything he went through just to get back into action.

"It felt good to be back on the field with my brothers," he said. "I was out since the Florida State game and I worked my (behind) off to get back."

Person said that he was only thinking about his injury as he took that ride from the field to the locker room in Tallahassee. But he never lost faith in his ability to play again this season.

The 6-foot-1, 220-pound Wake Forest native rushed for 176 yards on 43 carries with two touchdowns at the time of his injury. He had been the Wolfpack's leading ground gainer the week before against Ball State and appeared to be gaining momentum when he failed to get up after carrying for a four-yard gain on the opening series of the second half against the Seminoles.

His road to recovery lasted seven weeks. It ended Saturday in the end zone at Carter-Finley.

"It felt good," Person said of his 16-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Devin Leary early in the fourth quarter. "It was just a moment that we worked for. It's just another touchdown."

"I saw the corner drop down and then the safety came inside the box," he said. "Once I saw that, I said 'I'm wide open.' Touchdown."

Person nearly had another big gain in the passing game when he again found himself wide open on an option pass from wide receiver Thayer Thomas. But the throw hung up in the gusting wind and stayed in the air long enough for a pair of Louisville defenders to coverge on him and break up the play.

"I got to the sideline and I was mad at myself for not making that catch," Person said. "I'm going to keep working on it."

Despite the Wolfpack's struggles, Person is determined to keep doing whatever he can to help the team finish strong. He's come to far and worked to hard since that painful night in Tallahasse to stop now.

"Right now I feel like we're in the right place," he said. "The last two games is when we're going to show up. We'll practice this week and prepare for it. At the end of the day, we'll show up like we're supposed to do."