MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - The long, laboring summer workouts can take a toll on athletes as they try to get in the best shape and the best mindset they can for the upcoming season. The sweltering heat mixed with high-intensity training can wear out even the fittest of football players and leave them searching for the end of each drill and the chance to relax.

But not Chad Snodgrass.

West Virginia’s redshirt junior offensive lineman has gone through too much relaxation since he joined the Mountaineers for the 2007 season. His career thus far has been plagued with injuries, one after another. So when he participates in the grueling marathon workouts this summer, he soaks in the sun and the fact that he finally is back to 100 percent.

“It is incredibly satisfying,” he says. “It’s a large weight lifted off my shoulders, it’s hopefully something I’ll never have to worry about again and I can just look forward to playing football.”

As a freshman, Snodgrass set high expectations for himself after a successful prep career at Nitro High School. Early on, however, it was clear that the next step in his football experience would not go quite as smoothly as he would have hoped. In that first year with the team, he tore his labrum and his bicep tendon in his left shoulder, an injury that required surgery, which kept him sidelined for nine months.

After missing his entire redshirt freshman season, Snodgrass again saw his path crumble before he could walk it. This time, it was a fractured fifth metatarsal in his right foot that kept him off the field and working exclusively with the strength staff all through the summer. The break eventually healed, but during preparation for Pittsburgh last season, he suffered the exact same injury to the exact same bone.

“It’s almost indescribable,” says Snodgrass. “You feel like you’re letting everybody down. You’re letting your coaches down, your state down, your family down – it’s hard to overcome. I think I’ve overcome and I’ve dealt with it well, but it’s an extremely hard thing to do.”

Watching his teammates take actual reps while he was limited to the mental variation left Snodgrass feeling as though he was contributing nothing to the team’s success on the field. His role became one of game day motivation or instruction, but physically, he could offer very little.
 

“You just feel like you’re not part of the team,” he says. “The strength staff tries to make you feel as much a part of the team as they can, but deep down you know that you’re supposed to be out there practicing, you’re supposed to be hitting, and it’s hard not to.”

So now it’s summer, and while he may not be hitting, he is at a point where anything his teammates can do, he can do too. He has a three-inch screw in his right foot, which doctors have assured him will keep it protected from any future breaks.

His teammates acknowledge the struggle Snodgrass has been through, and fought past, in order to be in a position to help on the field.

“His shoulder and his foot, he’s been through a lot,” says starting tackle, Don Barclay. “He never stopped and he never missed workouts, so he’s always kept going. He’s been working really hard. He’s going to be a big part of this. We need some guys to fill in and take some reps during games, so we’re looking up to him right now.”

If veterans like Barclay are looking up to Snodgrass, then it is difficult to imagine how much his words and actions must mean to the younger players, still looking to find their way at West Virginia. Knowing that he was being watched by others at his position, he made sure to never hang his head or lose the determination to pick himself up and keep working to get back to 100 percent.

“To be a role model for the younger guys is a huge responsibility for an older offensive lineman,” says Snodgrass. “I’m trying to set an example about constantly working hard, coming back from injuries and being able to work hard through rehab. I’m trying to set a good example for them and also apply depth to the offensive line.”

Snodgrass says he has been working extremely hard on skill development through the last few months to ensure that he knocks all the rust off before getting into the hard-hitting practices coming up in fall camp.

He gets even more motivation to excel from the confidence offensive line coach Dave Johnson and the rest of the staff have shown in him, and he hopes this season he can prove that he was worth the wait.

“It means a great deal to me to have a coaching staff that still believes in me, still wants to give me a chance after all I’ve been through. It really lifts my spirits up.”