Bowling Green State University Athletics
Training Camp News--Kupke, Gerling Summer Rehab
August 16, 2001 | Football
Aug. 16, 2001
By JACK CARLE Sentinel Sports Editor
The rehab area at a hospital isn't the usual site for any competition.
Yet the sports medicine rehabilitation services area at Wood County Hospital was the venue for a friendly, yet very serious, competition this summer.
Kurt Gerling and Greg Kupke are both from Sterling Heights, Mich. and attended Henry Ford High School, with Gerling being one year older.
The pair are now teammates on the Bowling Green football team. Gerling is a 6-foot-2, 195 pound wide receiver while Kupke is a 6-3, 285 offensive lineman. Both suffered knee injuries during spring football which required surgery. Dr. Richard Barker did both reconstruction surgeries, with Gerling going first followed by Kupke, in April.
"Kurt contacted me and said he was interested in doing it (the rehab) here," said Mike Messaros, the senior athletic trainer at the rehabilitation services facility. "Greg then just jumped on the bandwagon."
Gerling and Kupke are both highly motivated to return and play this season. The pair worked in the pool, lifted weights, did plometrics at the hospital.
"Greg is real high-strung and Kurt is more laid back," Messaros said. "The two of them together, complimented each other very well ... the two of them meshed together real well, they pushed each other.
"I was the middle man, I played devil's advocate," he continued. "I also looked upon it as a challenge. I had never gotten anybody back this fast from this type of injury .... we really pushed the envelope."
If healthy, both should be important parts of BG's offense under first-year head coach Urban Meyer. Gerling is an outstanding receiver who will be a part of the Falcons' wide-open offense. Kupke is one of three returning offensive linemen with extensive experience.
For Gerling, it's his last season. A fifth-year senior, Gerling does not have any eligibility remaining after being redshirted in 1997. He was the MAC freshman of the year in 1998 with 34 receptions for 656 yards and six TDs. Gerling followed that up with a strong 1999 season, making 53 receptions for 775 yards and five more TDs.
However, in the season opener last fall against Michigan, Gerling suffered a broken collarbone. He came back from the injury to play in seven games, making 29 receptions for 324 yards and a touchdown. "I wanted to have a career where I didn't miss any games, that was real big letdown (last fall)," Gerling said. "When the knee came, I had to get myself back so I won't miss any games."
The fact he had only one season left was enough to motivate Gerling. Having his old high school buddy was just an added incentive.
"Whether he was doing four or five plates or I was doing 10 plates, we would always call each other out on it and make sure each other were working hard," Gerling said, who started his rehab before Kupke. "I think Greg was in a good situation. I was doing some things you don't normally do so early, but when Mike saw I could do them, he knew Greg could do it also. So he (Kupke) was getting pushed along faster and faster."
"I think he benefited from that and I benefited from him being there."
Kupke was happy to have a friend going through the same experience.
"Kurt is a very competitive guy and he brought out the best of me in the rehab," Kupke said. "There were certainly days when it was really hot and we would be coming from just working out at the weight room (in Perry Stadium) and then we had to come here (Wood County Hospital) for another two hours. It was great to have him with me, because there were days that we were dragging.
"He went through everything before I did ... I knew kind of what to expect," he added.
Kupke is also hoping for a quick return to the lineup. He was redshirted in 1998 and then started three times in 1999. Last season, Kupke played in 10 games, starting six. This fall, he hopes to be the starting right guard when the Falcons open the season at Missouri on Sept. 1.
For Messaros, he enjoyed working with the highly-motivated patients. Also in the mix was wide receiver Aaron Alexander, also a fifth-year senior, who was working to get back from a patella injury. "They all had the right mental attitude," Messaros said. "They really approached it from a good standpoint."
"I was very surprised when I went over there and saw what they had to offer," Gerling said about the hospital's rehab facility. "Mike Messaros did a great job of getting myself, Greg and Aaron Alexander also, ready."
As for who won the competition, it is a matter of perspective.
"He lost," Gerling said about Kupke. "For sure, I beat Gerling, offensive linemen always beats receivers," Kupke said.
If both are ready to go on Sept. 1, the Falcon football team may be the real winner.
