I was back in Texas this week and when I came out of the hotel and felt the full glory of 107 degrees, my immediate thought was one most wouldn’t understand: “It’s time for two-a-days.” When it gets that hot, I have physical memories of strapping on the pads, drinking from the hose that the coaches would turn on during breaks, and running the split-side series until we could do it in our sleep. That’s what players will be doing, more or less. There’s better equipment, better hydration, and offenses a bit more complex than the ol’ Wing-T. Of course, they have to be healthy to do this and more than a few will go down before the games even come around. Let’s take a look at what’s going on:

Percy Harvin (WR – FLORIDA)

I get it. He’s fast. He’s versatile. He’s the next Reggie Bush. He’s also recovering from heel surgery and fast guys on bad wheels are just guys. Harvin’s speed has looked “80%” according to not only some of my best sources, but also according to Urban Meyer, who says he’s closer to 90% in recent interviews. Heel problems have a tendency to recur, even after surgery, and along with Harvin’s small frame and lack of shiftiness in avoiding hits, he’s seemingly too injury prone to ever live up to the layers of hype that are coming down on him and Tim Tebow. He’s worth picking high, but he’s probably not worth as much as the pick it will take to get him.

Arrelious Benn (WR – ILLINOIS)

The Fighting Illini are looking for big things from Benn, but will he be able to hold up better than he did last season? Sure, he was effective, but he’s a very skinny WR and exposing him to hits seems one of the few things outside his skill set. Shoulder injuries have a tendency to recur, so Benn is a high risk, high reward pick, especially given the combination of the Illinois offense and some big hitting defenses that they will face. If there’s any positive it’s that Benn showed he can play through it to some extent. For me, this downgrades him a round or so in your draft.

Derek Kinder (WR – PITT)

The Pitt offense is much more wide open than most realize and the athletes they are bringing in really seem to be pushing them in that direction. Derek Kinder is one of their best, but he lost last season to an ACL tear on the first day of practice. He’s back and looks ready to reclaim his elite status, though he has yet to take contact, a big hurdle. There are other barriers, the most being whether or not Dave Wannstedt can tailor the offense to let Kinder do what he can do – run fast and catch the ball – rather than the things he’ll have more limitations on – cutting and taking hits below the waist. Sure, this isn’t singular to this situation, but coaching decisions and adjustments make a bigger deal to health than most realize.

Keith Toston (RB – OKLAHOMA ST)

It doesn’t look like T. Boone U is going to have it’s #1 RB. You can’t buy a new knee, though the doctors that can put guys like Keith Toston back together do a pretty good job. Toston’s still having some issues with swelling and stiffness, so the team is holding him out of practice. This far out, you’d hope that the rehab would be more or less complete physically and that Toston’s focus would be on proprioception, cutting, and the stop-start issues that accompany an ACL comeback. If he’s not to that stage now, it’s likely to come much further down the line, making him a risky play and likely to need some platoon help, especially early in the season.

Austin Collie (WR – BYU)

The Cougars are a terrible nickname for a team that’s made its name in the air. Isn’t there some fearsome airborne predator in Utah or maybe some angel that would be more appropriate? The air attack this season might have an issue since #1 WR Austin Collie came up with a stress fracture underneath his knee. Word is that its the fibula, so there’s a bit of good news in the bad. He’ll miss some time, but if you’re a gambler (which means you’re not on the BYU campus) Collie’s not a bad risk. Expect him back in time to prep for the first game, where he could run up huge numbers if he can cut. That’s the big worry, especially when he’s on hard turf as often seen out west.

Brad Cottam (TE – TENNESSEE)

Tight ends don’t get a lot of love in the college game as it mimics the vertical pro game in some ways and in others, the position is lost in the spread fad. (Yeah, I called it a fad. Didn’t you hear me talking Wing T earlier?) At Tennessee, the Vols were hoping that Brad Cottram could be an integral part of their run at the SEC title. Instead, he’s slowly healing from a broken leg suffered in spring drills and is more of a question mark now than he has been all year. The college schedule might be their best friend though, as Cottam might be ready in time for the conference games starting in mid-September with the Gators. Problem is that lingering problems with fractures tend to really linger. He’s worth watching to see if he’s on the waiver wire when he gets healthy, but not worth a pick.

Khalil Bell (RB – UCLA)

The Bruins’ #1 RB comes back to fall practice less than a year out from ACL surgery. He had the surgery in late October which puts him in a dangerous area. He’s healthy enough to be cleared to come back, but likely not 100%. As with Toston, the issues that almost all ACL survivors have become magnified in still-growing men. The Bruins’ situation is even more complex as Bell’s likely platoonmate, Raymond Carter, is also coming back from an ACL injury. We’ll see how the coaching staff uses the pair to make one running back. The problem in fantasy is that you can’t do the same with limited roster spots.

Kordell Young (RB – RUTGERS)

One of the most interesting things to me about college football is the question of “system vs stars.” We’ll never fully know until far too late whether a player stands out because of talent or system without a change, but with Ray Rice gone, Kordell Young has enough talent and the right system to be a big time back. I’m not sure he’ll put up the same huge numbers that got Rice to the top of the heap, but he’ll at least be healthy enough to try. Greg Schiano isn’t quite as convinced, with his quotes showing that while he hopes Young is his ace, he’s got Plan B at the ready. Keep your ear out for camp reports on Young before thinking you might have this year’s version of Rice’s running numbers.

Brandon Johnson (RB – WASHINGTON)

Tyrone Willingham thinks that Johnson will be ready to start from Day One. Should we question the coach? Absolutely. While Johnson just had his knee scoped, reports out of Seattle have him still dealing with tenderness and some swelling. The procedure was designed to clean up the knee and prevent just those sorts of problems but in some cases, it doesn’t. Johnson’s health and availability in camp should be a good gauge of how much he’ll be available once they start kicking it off on Saturday afternoon … or Thursday … or wherever ESPN makes them tee it up. People used to laugh at Lee Corso for much different reasons when he was coaching.

Kevin Whaley (RB – MINNESOTA)

I’m glad I don’t have much experience with gunshot wounds, but with Whaley, that’s what happened. He was shot in the leg outside a Virginia Beach club, but appears to have fully recovered. There was very little lasting damage to the leg, besides a reminder that there are certain places in certain towns that you shouldn’t be at if you have better things ahead of you, like a Big Ten scholarship. Whaley’s lucky that it was his leg and luckier that his leg wasn’t more injured. It’s hard to predict what any frosh might contribute, but he’s got a chance to be a real sleeper.

Related posts:

1. Triage Time: Fire up the Grills
2. Triage Time: Top Picks are a Falling…
3. Triage Time: Kicking Things Off
4. Triage Time: Will Carroll Squared
5. Triage Time: Knee to the Groin