By: Dave Collins
Sports Director
X: @DMCbroadcasting
The excitement of the upcoming Chadron State football season has been clouded over in recent days after a very serious injury at last Saturday’s practice.
Junior safety Jason Pugal faces a lengthy rehabilitation after he was injured making a hit as the offense and defense were going through game-like action in full pads.
I was covering practice at the field Saturday and while Pugal was being assessed by training staff the players separated out around the field in their position groups and shortly after were directed to go to the locker room. Practice was canceled for the remainder of the morning once it was understood Pugal was going to need serious medical attention.
Trainers, local emergency crews and athletics department staff were all on hand to manage the situation, and were able to get Pugal immobilized, back-boarded and taken to Chadron Community Hospital. He was eventually transferred to Rapid City via helicopter later in the afternoon for additional treatment.
According to the family’s Go Fund Me page, Pugal suffered a “severe neck injury” – fracturing his neck and compressing his C6 vertebra. The injury has left him without feeling from the chest down. The statement reads that Pugal has undergone spinal fusion surgery and will begin an intense rehab as his next steps once he gets back home in California.
He was about to begin his first season with the Eagle football team, transferring from Palomar College. The 20-year-old is married, and donations on his Go Fund Me page had reached over $20,500 of the $30,000 goal as of Monday night.
The family has been told it will cost $28,000 just to fly Jason home to begin rehab, and the communities that know and support Jason and CSC football have clearly stepped up in a major way already.
Here is a link to the Go Fund Me Page if you'd like to contribute, and where the family is also updating Jason’s status.
I’ll pass along significant updates as we get them as well.
Meanwhile, the team did return to the practice field yesterday following Sunday’s mandatory off day. The season opener is in just over a week when UNK visits Chadron, August 29.