Ohio State defensive back Tyler Moeller will have surgery Wednesday for an injury that he knew was coming.
View full sizeTyler Moeller (26) expects to rehabilitate his surgically repaired pectoral muscle in time to play in the 2011 season for the Buckeyes.COLUMBUS, Ohio -- When Tyler Moeller tore his left pectoral muscle against Illinois on Saturday, he knew it immediately because the Ohio State defensive back estimates he'd torn it about a dozen times before. This one was a full tear, though, which is why he'll undergo surgery at 11 a.m. Wednesday that will end his 2010 football season.
Everyone knows Moeller missed last season because of an off-field head injury. What most did not know was that Moeller had been basically tackling one-handed since the 2008 season.
"I kind of thought this was something that would happen eventually," Moeller said. "I've been using my right arm to hit and get off blocks."
Moeller said he first suffered a partial tear in the summer of 2008, but didn't want to slow down while fighting for playing time, so he wore a strap on his chest and played with the injury that entire season. He sat out last season after he was assaulted in a restaurant last summer, but his chest still wasn't healed all the way this year.
Moeller said he even tweaked it while putting his pants on before the game and suffered many partial tears in the past while playing. But he said he needed to suffer a full tear to have surgery, which is where he is now.
"I'm keeping my head up," Moeller said. "I've been through worse. I want to bounce back next year and get better. Things happen and you have to look at the bright side and get through it."
Moeller said he'll be sidelined for three months after surgery, and he's looking forward to getting back to full strength. He said his bench press of around 400 pounds was among the top five on the team before his injury, but for the last two years he's been able to press only 100 pounds.
Fully healed, he hopes to get a sixth year of eligibility from the NCAA to play his final season at Ohio State in 2011, then take a shot at the NFL.
"I can finally get it to 100 percent," Moeller said. "Now I can get my chest back."
But his teammates will miss him.
"It's real sad for a guy to put so much work into something and have it taken away twice in a row," OSU senior defensive lineman Dexter Larimore said. "It's just sad to see."
Agents on notice: Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray on Tuesday announced that his office had put sports agents "on notice" by reminding them of penalties they could suffer if they violate NCAA rules regarding athletes.
Cordray said letters were sent to more than 90 agents and agencies registered with the Ohio Athletic Commission.
Cordray said the laws or enforcement were not changing, but the idea of reminding agents that under existing state law they could face up to six months in jail or a $1,000 fine for improper contact with athletes could serve as a further deterrent.
Rick Chryst, the former commissioner of the Mid-American Conference and now counsel with Walter and Haverfield in its Sports Law group, said colleges could use any help they can get in monitoring agent contact.
"There's real support for government involvement on this issue," Chryst said. "I think it's helpful."
Stoneburner's return: Ohio State starting tight end Jake Stoneburner suffered an ankle injury against Eastern Michigan that forced him to miss the Illinois game. Teammates said Stoneburner returned to practice on Tuesday in a limited capacity, and OSU coach Jim Tressel said the Buckeyes should know more by Thursday.
Tressel called it an eight- to 21-day injury, so Stoneburner could sit out Saturday against Indiana as well.