No backing down

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 29/08/2022 (1381 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Jarome Penner couldn’t walk.

Sitting down, going to the washroom, and eating weren’t possible either.

Penner’s back pain was so excruciating he could hardly do anything, never mind do what he loves most — playing football.

The Sturgeon Heights Collegiate student first sought out answers in April of 2020 when the pain started to become a problem. An x-ray showed nothing, so Penner, a former soccer player who now shines on the gridiron as a wide receiver, defensive back and kicker, figured he was in the clear.

Far from it.

A year later, Penner returned home one night from playing soccer and suddenly his back was worse than ever.

“I had to hold up on walls to walk. It was like I was 95 years old and it was my last couple weeks,” said Penner.

“That’s when I was like ‘OK, something’s really wrong. We need to do something now.’”

He tried physio and went to a chiropractor, but nothing helped. It was around that time when Penner reached out to Pro Prep Academy — an organization started by former CFL linebacker D.J. Lalama and Toronto Argonauts running back Andrew Harris. Pro Prep aims to help local athletes on and off the field, with things such as performance training, academic tutoring, and athletic services such as athletic therapy. Lalama got Penner connected with the right doctors for his situation.

It turns out Penner, now 17 and heading into Grade 12, had a back infection, which is rare for someone his age.

“The infection can happen from any regular cut, scrape, or injection. They all asked if I was injecting needles cause that’s the most common way. But it can happen from any regular type of cut or anything,” Penner said.

“Bacteria travels in there and since it got into my disc, there’s not a lot of blood flow there so it just kind of sat there, found a good hiding spot, and ate away at that until it travelled to my psoas muscle (located in the lower lumbar region). I probably had it for two or three years before we even knew.”

To recover, Penner received intravenous antibiotics through a PICC line that was inserted on the inside of his bicep. After missing a year of football because of the pandemic, Penner had to miss all of 2021 because he had the PICC line for 15 weeks.

Penner administered the antibiotics himself every day.

Thankfully, it worked and he was cleared to play again this past January. He still gets back pain if he’s on his feet all day or pushes himself too hard in a workout, but Penner doesn’t spend time feeling sorry for himself.

“It was definitely hard mentally, but mental strength is a big part of football. That kind of helped me,” Penner said.

“… You just got to accept it, right? There’s not much you can do. You just got to deal with it. Life goes on. It isn’t something that should prevent you from committing to your dreams.”

For Penner, that dream is playing university football. It might seem like a tough task for the 5-9, 160 pounder, but he’s quickly made up for lost time this summer. He represented Team Manitoba’s tackle football team in Kelowna, B.C., at the 2022 Canada Cup and repped the province at flag football nationals earlier this month in Charlottetown, P.E.I.

Penner captained Manitoba’s under-18 flag team to a 46-30 victory over Ontario to win gold. He also led the team in interceptions and was tied for the most touchdowns.

Penner’s aunt Scarlett Derksen made the trip to Charlottetown for the tournament. Penner shares a special bond with Scarlett, as well as her husband Jeff, and lives with them half the time. As soon as Manitoba won, Penner ran over to Scarlett and the two embraced in a hug as tears rolled down their cheeks.

“You remember him not being able to walk and then you watch him run and catch these balls… It was emotional seeing him come full circle… It was hard watching him go through all that, so it was surreal watching him play,” Scarlett said.

“I couldn’t help but cry. I saw all the work he puts in and he works so hard. And the team worked so hard, right? They lost the first two games and they came back to win the whole thing. It was a roller coaster, but totally worth it.”

Penner’s summer has solidified him as one of the top Grade 12 prospects in the province. Lalama saw Penner’s work ethic with Pro Prep first-hand, so he’s not surprised to see him regain his form so quickly. While Penner plays various positions and can hit field goals from over 50 yards, receiver is where he has the most promise.

“He’s a pretty talented individual. He plays at a little bit of a smaller school in Sturgeon, but if you go out there and watch this kid play football, he catches it. He’s an extremely good route runner, very fast, very agile, and can play all three sides of the ball,” Lalama said.

“Just a multi-talented kid and I’m really excited that he has his Grade 12 year to kind of showcase what he can do now that this back issue is kind of in the past now for him. When I say he’s relentless, I mean, that word might not even do it justice just for how bad he wants football to work and how bad he wants to make it as far as he can go.”

Last week, teams across the Winnipeg High School Football League opened training camp. Doctors warned Penner that he may never get to play again, so to be back doing what he loves means the world to him.

“It feels so good to be back,” Penner said.

“It gives you goosebumps.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @TaylorAllen31