Former Flower Mound star overcomes life-threatening injury
FLOWER MOUND, Texas (BVM) — The 2019 season was Carson Winters’ last as a member of Flower Mound High School’s football team. However, towards the end of a practice session, disaster struck. The wide receiver burst forward to catch a pass, but, as he did, he took a hit, which left him in excruciating pain and unable to return to his feet.
As was customary at the end of the spring season, Flower Mound played a controlled intrasquad scrimmage. Winters, the team’s outside Z receiver, ran a fade toward the end zone and, while attempting the touchdown catch, exposed his midriff and took a hit from one of his defensive teammates. What seemed to be a normal football play turned out to be a serious injury, Winters.
Initially, Winters’ teammates and coaches were unsure of the severity of the injury.
“We thought maybe he got the wind knocked out of him,” Flower Mound head football coach Brain Basil says.
But Winters stayed on the ground for 10 minutes, and the extent of his pain immediately became clear. Taken to the emergency room, doctors told him he had suffered a deep bruise on his lower intestine and later said that his small intestine had ruptured altogether. It was a rare injury and even rarer in sport, especially in the high-impact world of football.
After spending nearly a month in the hospital, of which almost half were spent in an intensive care unit, Winters left the hospital almost 50 pounds lighter. It wasn’t entirely clear whether he would walk again, let alone play the game he loves so much.
During his high school career at Flower Mound, Winters became an integral part of a program led by coach Brian Basil, who remembers him as “a team leader” and an “All-District level player.”
When he reflects on that fateful day and the fallout that ensued, Basil says, “His comeback was miraculous! We did not expect him to play football again, however, he was cleared to return in late-June. During our summer workouts, we saw how quickly he was returning to his normal form.
He ended up starting for us the first game of the year and played at an extremely high level. We learned how remarkable his determination and willpower were and how important it was to him to be able to play with his team and for his school his senior year.”
On his NCSA recruiting profile, Winters himself made clear his intentions of getting back to his best. He recounted how he “went to work” in body and mind and “set a goal to be back up to playing weight, and form, by our first scrimmage. Surrounded by supportive family, coaches, teammates, and community, the comeback began.”
Basil describes the “tremendous amount of discipline” it took for his player to stick to a 5,000 calorie a day diet to regain his weight and strength for a return.
“He never once believed that he would not be able to play. We all gained valuable lessons regarding determination and perseverance. He and his family made a positive impact on everyone by showing how strong their faith was through an incredibly difficult situation,” Basil said.
Having arrived at the end of a winding road to full recovery, Winters left behind that life-changing experience as an inspirational member of the class of 2020.
“Carson will no doubt carry the lessons from his experience to have a positive impact on everyone that he is around,” Basil said. “There are certainly life lessons to be learnt from his resilience and dedication to recovery.
