FEATURED: Ross Blacklock
11/9/2019 1:20:00 PM | Football
By Julie Doles - TCU Athletics Communications Intern
---
When a talented athlete is stripped of his ability to walk, how does he get back on his feet?
Junior defensive tackle Ross Blacklock made a statement as a redshirt freshman when he earned Freshman All-America and Big 12 Co-Defensive Freshman of the Year honors in 2017. However, coming off the high of a successful debut campaign, Blacklock suffered an injury in the 2018 fall camp that sidelined him for the season.
Sports have always come naturally to Blacklock. Growing up, he played football, basketball, baseball, ran track, and swam competitively; he even dabbled in tennis and soccer. His affinity for football began when he was 4 years old. After watching it on TV, he decided that football was the sport he wanted to play.
As Blacklock continued to grow, so did his apparent talent and love for the game. He caught the interest of many Power Five schools and was a sought-after recruit out of Missouri City, Texas, with offers from numerous schools including Alabama, Texas A&M, LSU, and Texas among others.
Blacklock knew TCU was the best place for him to succeed both on and off the field. He was initially attracted to the coaches and the atmosphere of the university. Sure enough, TCU hit the jackpot as he proved to be unstoppable his redshirt freshman season. He started all 14 games and recorded 27 tackles.
Blacklock's momentum came to a halt when he was forced to sit out the 2018 season. No athlete anticipates a devastating injury, and for Blacklock, it wasn't an easy recovery.
"It was hard," said Blacklock. "I'd get up some days and try to get out of bed and walk, and I'd just fall. I was in a dark place and it took me awhile to get out of there. I'd never been hurt, and I had to teach myself to relax and just let God do the work."
After many months of rehab and hard work, Blacklock has found his rhythm this season and is back to dominating at the line of scrimmage. He has a team-high 3.5 sacks, while his 7.5 tackles for loss place second on the team. He has been a team captain and totaled a career-best seven tackles, including one for loss, last week at Oklahoma State.
"My first game coming back, I had a lot of butterflies," he said. "It felt like my very first game ever. Everything was so overwhelming, but once I got my feet wet, it was back to normal."
He has learned that life goes beyond football, but while he has the opportunity to play on the Big 12 stage, he's going to give the game all he has.
"I just live every day and play every game like it's my last," Blacklock said. "I had a whole year taken away from me that I'll never get back. But I just play every game like it's my last. You never know, so you have to go hard every day."
This week Blacklock is prepared to give his all and fight alongside his brothers in an emotional rivalry game against Baylor.
