Storm

With return, relief for Solomon

The Storm OS says getting back on the field tonight signifies that a bad period is over.

By FRANK PASTOR
Published March 18, 2006

TAMPA - Sitting out was frustrating enough. Worse, for Freddie Solomon, was knowing his injuries weren't what he considers football-related.

"I call them sprinter injuries," the fifth-year Storm offensive specialist said. "I'm just running, and I'm out for three or four games. I didn't get hit, didn't get tackled or anything. I'm just running."

Solomon was running in motion during a 61-60 win over Georgia on Feb. 10 when he dropped to the turf. He feared he had ruptured his Achilles' tendon, an injury that kept him out for the 2002 season.

He was diagnosed with plantar fascitis, an inflammation of the tissue connecting the heel bone to the base of the toes. The pain in his foot made it difficult to push off and sprint downfield.

After four weeks to heal and with the assurance he can't aggravate the injury, Solomon returns tonight, when the Storm plays New York.

He will have his foot taped, and Bobby Sippio and Lawrence Samuels will alternate running the high motion. But for Solomon, who originally targeted last week's game against Dallas for his return, getting back on the field is all that matters.

"The extra week took a lot of soreness out of me," Solomon said. "That was my main thing, just trying to run and deal with the pain. But since I got the cortisone shot last Friday, that helped me out a lot, so now I can actually bear running on it and cutting."

Solomon, 33, said he started to feel sorry for himself after his fourth injury in five seasons. He set team single-season records for receptions (106) and receiving yards (1,533) in 2003 but missed a game because of a shoulder injury in 2004 and five with ankle and quadriceps injuries last season.

"It's been one thing after another," Solomon said. "I can't understand it. I don't know if it's something that I've got to overcome, if it's a test. I don't know what it is, but I'm just going to stay strongminded and keep fighting."

Solomon is fighting a different battle off the field. He was detained and missed a game Feb.3 at Grand Rapids because of a child support case in Alachua County involving ex-girlfriend, Katria Merricks, who has custody of their 14-year-old daughter.

Solomon said he paid the money he owed and the matter will be resolved after the season.

"Everything's behind me," Solomon said. "That's why I'm so glad for everything to be finished. It's something that's been going on for six or seven years."

Back in the lineup, the 5-foot-11, 185-pound Solomon could be more dangerous than ever.

"He's not going to be the No.1 threat that guys are looking to stop when he does get back in there," quarterback Shane Stafford said. "Guys are looking to stop (Samuels), they're looking to stop Sippio, and Freddie is probably right now the third person they are looking to stop, just because he hasn't played."

In Solomon's absence, Demetris Bendross caught 29 passes for 485 yards and six touchdowns in four games. But Bendross, in his second year, doesn't have the same familiarity with Stafford.

"The knowledge that Shane knows he has thrown to him now going on three years and the offseason, too, that's tough to replace," coach Tim Marcum said.

Times researcher Angie Drobnic Holan contributed to this report.

[Last modified March 18, 2006, 02:30:29]