A story worth rooting for – the return of Colts RB Vick Ballard

ANDERSON – He transitioned from model-car man to bookworm during his 22 months on the sideline. Hey, Vick Ballard had to kill the time somehow. He couldn’t play football for darn near two years.

One day an Indianapolis Colts teammate slid a book his way titled “Unbroken.” Author Laura Hillenbrand traces the story of World War II hero Louis Zamperini, a U.S. Air Corps lieutenant who survived a plane crash in the Pacific, endured 47 days drifting on a raft lost at sea, then more than two years as a prisoner of war in brutal Japanese camps. The title was fitting. Through the worst of it – there was plenty – Zamperini’s spirit refused to break. He remained an icon of resilience until his death in 2014.

The teammate that gave Ballard that book? Andrew Luck.

Luck’s gift didn’t come by accident. Ballard’s spirit could have easily broken during the past two years. He’s the unluckiest Colt on the 90-man roster, the once-promising rookie in 2012 who led the team with 814 rushing yards, the fearless running back who corkscrewed his way into the end zone in Tennessee to win the game in overtime, only to watch his sophomore and junior seasons in the NFL get robbed from him.

Which is why Sunday for Vick Ballard felt so significant. It was his first football practice in over a year, just his third over the past 22 months. He participated in the team’s morning walkthrough, then ran through individual drills during the afternoon practice.

No matter how menial the tasks were. Ballard was on the football field, sporting a new jersey number (No. 26) and the sobering perspective that comes with missing 36 games over the past two seasons. He wasn’t watching from the sideline.

After two lost years, you appreciate the little things. Like slipping on your football cleats. Like stretching with teammates. Like film sessions after practice. Like making it through a practice six weeks before the season opener fully healthy.

“The stuff I used to dream of,” he said.

Ballard’s is a story worth rooting for. The Colts’ fourth-year back was cleared by team doctors in the last week to return to on-field activity for the first time since last July, when he tore his left Achilles tendon on the second day of training camp. That came ten months after he ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament on the second practice of the second week of his second NFL season. Two freak injuries. Two seasons gone.

There’s unlucky. Then there’s Vick Ballard’s story.

That’s why this opportunity – very well his last NFL opportunity – is one that must be seized. He’s entering the last year of his contract, and injury-plagued running backs don’t have much value in this league. Ballard knows the cold reality.

“It’s a lot of hurt, a lot of pain, but a lot of growth, too,” he said of the past two years. “I’m fortunate to still be here. They believe in me, so I’m trying to give them what they expect.”

The Colts don’t just believe in Ballard. They’re pulling for him, too.

“How could you not?” coach Chuck Pagano asked. “Love that kid. He’s a warrior. He’s a great player. He’s a great teammate. That’s a foxhole buddy; you want to take him downtown with you because you know he is going to have your back.”

But his return will take time. He says he’s “close to 100 percent, real close.” Most of all, it will require patience. Rehab, first for the ACL, then the Achilles tendon, has been a long, slow slog. It has tested his resolve and his belief. It’s put his NFL career in jeopardy. His progress back to game-day participant must be tempered, and the Colts know this. Same as how they’re handling Robert Mathis, the team is choosing to err on the side of caution.

Ballard’s practice reps will be monitored for the coming weeks – a pitch count of sorts – as he works his way back into football for the first time in 22 months. He remains hopeful he can return to the form Colts fans last saw him at.

“A couple of people reach out at least every week,” he said. “Stuff like that keeps me going. I want them to look at me like a symbol of strength.”

A healthy Ballard adds significant depth to a Colts running back room that already figures to be a sizable step up from last season’s group. Frank Gore is in town, the assured No. 1 starter. Boom Herron is back, a capable No. 2. Josh Robinson is here, too, the rookie out of Mississippi State who offers promise.

Where does Ballard fit in? For now, it doesn’t particularly matter. What does: He’s back on the football field. On Sunday, that was enough.

“It makes me happy inside,” Ballard said. “But at the same time, it’s a little bit of happiness, but not a lot. Still have a ways to go.”

Where does the road end for the unbreakable Vick Ballard? What’s his best-case scenario?

“I get back to the old Vick,” he said, smiling.

Call Star reporter Zak Keefer at (317) 444-6134 and follow him on Twitter: @zkeefer