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George Rogers is hurting these days. All over.
During an 11-year period covering his careers at South Carolina and in the NFL, Rogers carried the football 2,646 times. His body was beaten to a pulp with injuries ranging from a thumb that once was bent behind his pinky finger to a dislocated shoulder.
Today, Rogers is a 50-year-old in a 65- to 70-year-old body. He is Exhibit A for what happens to a bruising running back that used his body with a total lack of restraint.
"Some days I hate to wake up," Rogers says, "because I know I can't stand on my feet. I have trouble walking some days."
Rogers works for the South Carolina athletics department as a goodwill ambassador for the school where he won the Heisman Trophy in 1980. A year later he was the NFL rookie of the year with the New Orleans Saints.
"Those are the battle scars you take with you when you leave that league," Rogers says of the injuries, most of which he suffered in the pro game. "When they say 'NFL,' they mean it: 'Not For Long.'"
Rogers has trophies, plaques and rings to help him recall his greatest plays and moments. But it is the damaged shins, surgically repaired knee and shoulder, and arthritic toes and thumb that serve as a daily reminder of what he endured as a player.
Rogers admits he probably should have stepped out of bounds more often. That was not his style. Instead, he ran over and through opponents. He gained an extra yard by lowering his shoulder and slamming into a defensive back.
Now, and for the remainder of his life, he will pay a heavy price.
His shoulder was the first body part to fall prey to the game. He injured it during his sophomore season and had it surgically repaired. Then, in a 1985 game for Washington, it was dislocated and a second surgery followed.
Playing on artificial surface resulted in severe shin splits that plague him today.
Rogers played most of the 1983 season with an injured left knee that required off-season surgery. The knee is so arthritic today, Rogers cannot climb the 17 steps in his two-story home without the use of the rail.
As a rookie, Rogers dislocated his right thumb, which was bent back so far it appeared to be on the wrong side of his hand.
Finally, there are the concussions Rogers played through. The first followed a helmet-to-helmet tackle by Seattle strong safety Kenny Easley, a hit that sent Rogers flying on his back.
"The older you get, the more you can't remember anyway," Rogers says. "I think (the concussions) affect your memory. Hey, you're a running back. You're probably taking more hits than anybody on the field, as far as taking licks, getting hit."
Rogers attempts to stay in shape. Some days he rides eight miles on a stationary bike. He lifts weights to strengthen his shoulder, and he does sit-ups to work on his waist.
Yet even with the constant limping and sharp pains that shoot through his body, from his toes to his hands to his shoulder, Rogers said he would do it all again.
