Georgia’s ‘blessing’ allows Goede to overcome ACL tear and fulfill lifelong dream

As Ryland Goede lay on the turf at Emory Sewell Stadium in agonizing pain, he didn’t know what happened.

Goede, a four-star Georgia tight end signee, would suit up as a Kennesaw Mountain football player for the final time on that Oct. 5 night. It was the first region game against North Cobb, and Goede jumped up to snag a back-shoulder fade from his quarterback.

In that very same moment, lying on the turf, he knew.

As he reached over the defender, it felt awkward in mid-air as Goede went to the ground. His knee popped like the snap of a finger and his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) was torn.

“It was a tough break for a guy who has worked so hard and been such a leader in our offseason program,” Kennesaw Mountain head coach Caleb Carmean said. “It was not a big hit or anything, he actually went up and made a really good catch.”

Goede had a few doubts pop into his head, but trusted in his faith that night. He didn’t know what his future held after an injury with potential long-term effects. Thirty minutes after leaving the field, the prayer was answered.

There were text messages and phone calls from three members of Georgia’s staff — head coach Kirby Smart, offensive coordinator Jim Chaney and director of recruiting Marshall Malchow.

“They were reaffirming that I was good with them and they wished me the best,” Goede said. “That was a huge blessing for me.”

From the moment of his injury, Goede has remained strong throughout. His support system in Kennesaw is firm and includes his family, high-school coaches and friends, most notably lifelong friend Dominick Blaylock, a five-star wide receiver pledge out of Walton.

Over four months later, Goede signed his national letter-of-intent to Georgia with that promise in mind. He is the lone tight end in the 2019 class, and one of the first to ink an agreement with the Bulldogs on the first day of the early signing period.

“It was about me being strong in my faith,” said Goede, who referenced Psalm 37:4-7 as his go-to passage. “It’s one of the things I leaned on, and I knew whatever happened, the Lord was going to have a path for me.”

Goede’s rehabilitation has progressed well, and a lot of it has taken place at Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall with Georgia director of sports medicine Ron Courson. Throughout the recovery period, Goede has driven to Athens weekly for sessions and regards Courson as “the best at what he does.”

There’s no specific exercise that Courson has taught the incoming Georgia freshman, but it’s a practice-like approach that drives Goede to improve.

“It’s the details and how they’ve focused on the little things that have improved my knee the most,” he said. “When I go in there, the mentality is to get my work done. It’s just like a workout — I’m in there and focused. We spend about two hours sometimes just grinding away and working to get better.”

In his early trips to the facility, Goede didn’t know too many of the players, but has since built bonds with Charlie Woerner, John FitzPatrick and Jake Fromm.

One of Goede’s biggest supporters on the Bulldogs’ roster has been freshman running back Zamir White, who has suffered two torn ACL injuries and has yet to play a collegiate snap as a formerly-heralded prospect.

“The biggest thing he’s been telling me is to not get too discouraged and keep grinding. You’ll get out what you put in,” Goede said. “That has been my attitude through the whole thing.”

Georgia’s plan for Goede is to have him begin practicing in a black non-contact jersey in spring practice. Then, by fall camp, he’s expected to be a full participant.

Once Goede is back into playing shape, his message to Chaney was clear: “’Throw me on the scout team, I’ll work my butt off and do what I have to do make sure I’m playing.”

On his official visit, Goede had a 30-minute meeting with Smart and four-to-five different sit-downs with Chaney.

The timing could be ideal for Goede as Georgia’s tight end situation is fluid to finish the 2018 season. Isaac Nauta, a junior, is mulling his decision to declare for the NFL draft. Freshman Luke Ford is not currently with the team, and a family source told The Telegraph that he’d return on Dec. 26 and travel to the Sugar Bowl.

Ford’s name, however, is reportedly in the NCAA transfer portal for other coaches to contact him.

“There’s a couple different way it can go,” Goede said. “It puts me with (Woerner and FitzPatrick) for some playing time, even with the knee injury. A lot of it is up in the air and we’ll see who leaves. There’s not really a set schedule.”

Goede’s signature to sign with Georgia brings a lifelong dream to realization. He has remained committed since Feb. 7, but it started during the days of crawling around as a child sporting a Georgia helmet and jersey.

At that moment, he didn’t know what would come next. But at the same time, he knew.

“Georgia is special,” Goede said. “And I’m excited to be a Bulldog.”

This story was originally published December 19, 2018 at 8:05 AM.