OSU's Lyrik Rawls had his 2023 season snatched away. Expect "tears of joy" in his return to Boone Pickens Stadium
- Aug 17, 2024 Updated 8 hrs ago
Tyler Waldrep
OSU Sports WriterSTILLWATER — Some moments stay with you.
Such a moment came for Oklahoma State safety Lyrik Rawls when he got the diagnosis of a partially torn ACL that would end his breakout season after only three games in 2023.
“I wanted to break down right then and there,” Rawls said.
After spending most of his first two years on the sidelines, Rawls finally earned the first three starts of his career. And he was more than making the most of his chance.
Rawls was third on the team with 20 total tackles, including 10 solo stops. Against South Alabama, he led all of the secondary with a Pro Football Focus grade of 73.
Then Rawls, who had never suffered such a serious injury before, was given two choices. Continue playing and put himself at high risk of tearing his ACL all the way, which would lead to season-ending surgery in the best of circumstances. Or he could go ahead and have season-ending surgery.
“Basically, I would still need to get surgery,” Rawls said. “So I felt like the best option for me was to go ahead and get it now and be back for the next season.”
Oklahoma State safety Lyrik Rawls started three games before missing the rest of the season due to a torn ACL.
Daniel Shular, Tulsa World
Returning to the football field was always the destination, but Rawls’ “tough journey” through rehabilitation forced him to take stock of an even bigger picture.
“This injury really took a toll on me,” Rawls said. “Got me closer to myself, closer to God having to pray more because this has been a tough time. But through the process of it I feel like it made me visualize a lot of things outside of football. Get closer to just the outside world. Not being in the mix anymore, so I feel like I’ve gotten closer to being a better person.”
When asked about the healing process and the time missed, the Oklahoma State defensive back can’t keep the smile off his face these days.
However, he didn’t always have such a positive outlook. Even as recently as June, Rawls sometimes fought through a sea of negative thoughts and emotions.
“I’m not back in my normal self just yet,” Rawls said, describing what kept him down. “I just can’t do everything like I used to. It is a process. It takes time being hurt. So, I feel like as the process goes on, it gets better and better. But there are still some days you take a step back. So those days, I have to keep lifting myself up to go attack the day.”
Oklahoma State safety Lyrik Rawls, left, started the first three games of his college career in 2023.
Ross D. Franklin, AP file photo
Although Rawls said he feels 100% healthy now, Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy hasn’t yet seen the player he lost last season.
“He’s much better now than he was two weeks ago,” Gundy said. “I would say that, that should continue on. Two weeks from now, he should even be better. Middle of October, (if) he stays healthy, he should be somewhere where he was before he was injured.
Oklahoma State has a bye ahead of its seventh game this season at BYU on Oct. 18th. If the coaching staff prefers to limit his involvement until he’s back to his old self, that could be their target date.
Last year, then-freshman Cameron Epps started in Rawls’ place in 10 of the final 11 games, with Dylan Smith taking the other. Rawls will likely have to beat both of those guys and potentially UTEP transfer Kobe Hylton, who earned honorable mention All-Conference USA honors in 2022 and 2023.
“We’ll play a considerable number of guys,” Gundy said of the safety position. “That’s what we want to be able to get accomplished, keep guys fresh. We’re expecting that the depth we have allows us to grow and let guys stay healthy. Some of the issues that we deal with is that if a young player plays too much in his career early, then he gets tired, and that works against him. Right now, we have some depth there and some guys can rotate through, and that should help us.”
Tears of joy
The 2024 season is only two weeks away, but Rawls can’t fully imagine what it will be like the first time he steps foot on the field for a game inside Boone Pickens Stadium.“Oh man, I’ll probably just cry,” Rawls said. “Tears of joy because having the season took away from me like that. It was really hard for me. I was feeling isolated. … I feel like I’m gonna be so just happy to be back out there.”
OSU safety Lyrik Rawls, right, is fighting for a spot in the lineup during fall camp.
Victor Lopez, Tulsa World
His inability to be out there with his teammates might have left Rawls feeling disconnected from the Cowboys at times, but that feeling appears to be anything but mutual.
“Even when he was battling his injury, he was still around,” Oklahoma State cornerback Cam Smith said. “Still being a vocal leader, and I feel like that made him a better all-around player. Because even when he’s not in the game, he’s still coaching from the sideline.”
That made an impression on Smith.
“I think that just speaks volumes about who he is as a person,” the corner said. “He’s selfless.”
Of course, staying active in meetings and the film room didn’t just help Oklahoma State. Smith watched Rawls push himself to gain a better understanding of the defense even though he couldn’t put his knowledge to the test on the field.
“It’s been good having him back,” Oklahoma State cornerback Korie Black said. “Giving us more depth than we’ve had after losing him last year. He’s a good player, a good playmaker. He’s big and physical. A lot of people didn’t get to see him because he got hurt early in the season, but he’s doing great.”
