North Dakota State sophomore left tackle Dillon Radunz was ready to rip the door of its hinges when fall camp opened a couple weeks ago. Radunz missed all but 17 plays last season after tearing his ACL in the season opener against Mississippi Valley State.
Radunz spent the last 11 months rehabbing, I visited with him on Media Day last week and he told me he felt “100 percent” during spring ball, but the doctors said not to rush back from the injury. Radunz also shared with me that he felt the injury was “a blessing” and he became closer to his faith after dealing with some dark times when he was hurt. I thought he was rather forthright about how he dealt with it and seems comfortable in his own skin.
Radunz hasn’t really played football in three years. He redshirted in 2016, missed almost all of last season and now is ready to go. He’s pencilled in as the starting left tackle, a spot I don’t believe he’s going to give up until he graduates from NDSU.
I also had a story on redshirt freshman Christian Watson and his hopes of making an impact on the field this upcoming fall. Watson has had plenty of attention surrounding him before he’s even played a down, including Chris Klieman calling him “an absolute stud.” Watson is out of practice right now after injuring his ankle, his status for the season opener is in question. Check out his story here.
I’ll have an update from fall camp coming up later today.