Never say die: Garrison Hearst's comeback from a devastating injury in 1999 offers an uplifting lesson in determination

Football Digest, Dec, 2001 by Dennis Georgatos

WITH EVERY PLAY, EVERY run, and every hit, San Francisco 49ers running back Garrison Hearst closed in on a goal that at times had seemed out of reach.

Finally, with the game hanging in the balance in overtime, Hearst burst through a hole opened by 49ers tackle Scott Gragg and rookie tight Eric Johnson, and cut upfield for an 11-yard gain, his longest of the day. The run set up the chip-shot field goal the 49ers used to finish a come-from-behind, season-opening win over the Atlanta Falcons. More importantly, it signified the completion of a remarkable journey by the 30-year-old Hearst. He had persevered through four operations and two and a half years of rehabilitation to come back from a devastating ankle injury.

"Seeing him shoot through there like that--I'm going to remember that block for the rest of my life," Gragg says. "It was an emotional time for us because we were coming back and he was coming back and you always remember those comeback games. It's inspiring. It makes you appreciate what you have, and know that anything is possible. Garrison definitely deserves everything he's done. He's earned it."

Back in 1998, Hearst was widely regarded as one of the premier backs in the league. He was at the top of his game for the 49ers, rushing for a team-record and career-high 1,570 yards and earning his first Pro Bowl selection.

But at the end of a seven-yard run on the first play from scrimmage in a January 9, 1999, divisional playoffs game at Atlanta, Hearst's left foot caught on the Georgia Dome turf as he tried to spin away from Chuckie Smith's tackle. His ankle was fractured in the gruesome twisting action, but even as he lay on the turf, Hearst never envisioned the struggle that was hi store for him before he could walk, run, and play again.

"I said to myself, `OK, a bone heals in six or seven weeks. Let it play out, start rehabbing, and play next season,'" Hearst says. "The hardest part at the time was that we had come so far to lose to Atlanta. We felt we had the game plan to win. But we didn't win, and other complications came up. That's where the story starts."

Hearst underwent an initial operation to set the fracture and repair ligament and other soft tissue damage, but complications arose that stalled his recovery. As he was trying to ready himself for the subsequent training camp, team physician Dr. Michael Dillingham discovered that circulatory problems were choking off file blood supply to his foot, leading to avascular necrosis. The degenerative bone condition caused Hearst's talus, the principal source of support in the ankle, to decay and die.

Bo Jackson's football career with the Raiders ended after a hip injury also resulted in avascular necrosis. Jackson, who had to have hip-replacement surgery, did come back to play baseball, but Hearst is believed to be the first person to resume a career in pro football after a bout of avascular necrosis.

It was a tedious, painstaking, and risky path, both for Hearst and the 49ers, who kept him on the payroll despite salary cap problems over the past two seasons. Both sides agreed to one final restructure on the eve of this season's opener to make Hearst's contract more cap-friendly, leaving them in position to reap the rewards of their determination.

"I would say some other teams may have cut him because of the slim chance he had," Niners coach Steve Mariucci says. "But it's been a two-way street. He was as good as anybody when he got hurt. So if he was willing to try to come back, we were willing to give him that chance. We owed it to him. The injury might have been screaming out, `Retire, Garrison!' But you've got to love his determination to be back. He'll never say die."

Hearst says he never doubted that he would return, and he based his faith in part on past experience. He suffered torn left knee ligaments near the end of his rookie season in 1993 with the Arizona Cardinals. He fought through more problems the next year, but he rushed for 1,070 yards in 1995 and earned NFL Comeback Player of the Year honors. He also missed four games with the 49ers in 1997 after breaking his left clavicle at the end of a run that gave him his second career 1,000-yard rushing season.

"You never want a serious injury of course, but it did help me realize that I could come back," Hearst says. "The thing is, I knew I had already come back from something like that, and I played well. I knew it could happen because I had done it. Through the good times and bad, I've never thought I wouldn't play."

The fact that he was at the peak of his career also fueled his determination to get back on the field, no matter how slim the odds, no matter how long or tortuous the rehabilitation. "The thing that has kept me going is that I feel that when I got hurt, I got hurt at my best," Hearst says. "Football has been my life. Most players want to leave on their own terms or where they feel they are still contributing to the team. I'm not done yet."

Fullback Fred Beasley, who is Hearst's friend and lead blocker, says that while many see his comeback as remarkable, those closest to the former Georgia Bulldog knew he had the mental toughness and makeup to persevere. "Ultimately, this is about Garrison's character and his willpower," Beasley says. "What he went through--wow--if that doesn't say something about his character, nothing will. It tells you everything you need to know about Garrison as a person."