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Injured Cobras rebound

Vince Ferlita (neck stinger) was cleared to play Friday; Paul James (concussion) likely won't but did return to school.

HUDSON - One Hudson player who left last Friday's game against Land O'Lakes by ambulance is expected to play against Ridgewood on Friday, while the other likely will be held out.

Running back/cornerback Vince Ferlita, who sustained a neck stinger in Hudson's 29-16 loss, was cleared by his doctor.

Safety Paul James (mild concussion) likely will be held out, Cobras coach Mark Nash said.

Both players were at school Monday.

Linebacker John Weatherford hit Ferlita as he went across the middle for a pass early in the second quarter. Ferlita left on a stretcher and was airlifted to St. Joseph's Hospital, where he was cleared and released. After reviewing videotape, Nash said the hit wasn't helmet-to-helmet as he first thought.

"It was very close, but in my opinion it was a clean, legal hit," Nash said. "It's just an unfortunate one. Vince was in a very vulnerable position, and Weatherford made a very clean hit."

James was injured after colliding with teammate Royce Simonds. James received medical attention on the sideline for much of the fourth quarter before leaving in an ambulance.

Simonds ("a culmination of 100 hits," Nash said), lineman Allen Wynn (ankle) and linebacker Matt Edelman (elbow) also were banged up.

The coaching staff was affected, too. After Ferlita's father, Vince, accompanied his son to the hospital, the Cobras were without a special teams coach.

"We would have been fine if we would have been at full strength," Nash said. "But problems were presented as much by having people down as they were by Vince not being there. Vince would have had a lot better handle on dealing with the injuries than we did."