The family of Mayville State quarterback Matt Donovan is doing their best to stay optimistic as his ICU stay nears the one-month mark.
Matt’s father, Terry Donovan, said they are “still holding out hope” that Matt, 21, will be able to move from a hospital in North Dakota to a rehabilitation facility in Nebraska, but a recent infection and spike in his white blood cell count is hindering that process.
“They are working with medications to get that under control,” Terry shared via Facebook on Tuesday, October 13. “Getting the infected fluid drained from his chest is a major milestone toward being ready to move. It is draining, but the fluid has been very thick and gunky, so they gave him medicine to help break it up and allow it to drain more easily. We will see where things stand tomorrow morning. They are also planning another CT scan to check for any other reason for the elevated white blood cell count.”
Matt has been in a medically-induced coma since September 19, when he was involved in a helmet-to-helmet hit in a game against Simpson University. The quarterback suffered massive brain trauma and underwent surgery to remove part of his skull on the day of the incident.
“They are planning to put his protective helmet on and try to sit him up a little more tomorrow,” Terry explained. “Because pieces of his skull were removed to give his brain room to swell, he will need that helmet when he is up and out of bed. Those pieces will stay out for a while to allow room for the ups and downs of swelling before they are put back in.”
Terry said that the family hopes Matt can be transferred to the rehab facility in Nebraska “even while in a semi conscious state.”
“We are excited to see him take that next step,” Terry wrote. “For now, we are in a little bit of a holding pattern. Today was another one of those steps sideways, but Matt keeps fighting for extra yards. Even though his white blood cell count was higher this morning, it came down a little tonight. He keeps battling.”
He added, “I cannot wait for him to wake up so I can tell him how proud I am of him. For those of you who have met Matt, you know the heart he has. I believe with everything in me that he is going to pull through this. For those of you who haven’t met him, I cannot wait for the day you get to meet the young man you have been praying for and cheering on.”
Mayville State played its first home game since Matt’s injury on Saturday, October 10.
“It was pretty emotional walking through the tailgate and seeing [Matt’s jersey] and the shirts and the support that this group has,” head coach Rocky Larson told WDAY. “But once the ball was kicked off, I thought our kids settled into the game really well.”
Mayville State defeated Valley City State University, improving their record to 5-2.
