AMES — Levi Peters may not be the fastest linebacker or the hardest hitter, but there is one trait he doesn’t lack: toughness. After suffering a ruptured Achilles tendon last season, there aren’t many things that could keep the senior linebacker off the field.
Apparently that includes the torn serratus anterior, a muscle close to the rib cage, Peters suffered in the Cyclones’ 30-23 loss to Toledo.
“He’s not 100 percent but he’s been out there every day this week and it’s gotten a little bit better every day this week,” said Iowa State head coach Paul Rhoads. “Wednesday is a day we go out there and field onside kicks and he was out there getting down and dirty going after them. So yeah, I think he’ll be as good as he can be going into the game.”
Peters has racked up 12 tackles, including one for loss, during the first three games of his redshirt junior season, but recorded just two in the loss to Rockets after sustaining the injury on the Cyclones’ first defensive play of the second half.
Even though the injury won’t keep the walk-on turned team captain off the field this week, his coach doesn’t think he’ll be back to full health for the rest of the season.
“Just because of the nature of this game,” Rhoads said. “I doubt he’ll get healthy.”
When asked about the injury, Peters put it rather simply.
“I just know it hurts.”
For Levi Peters, pain isn’t a reason to keep him off the field when the Cyclones kickoff with Kansas at 11 a.m. Saturday morning at Jack Trice Stadium.
“They’ve got a real athletic quarterback. They have good recievers,” Peters said. “Same stuff, just there’s different guys you’ve got to worry about, but really we’ve got a good game plan and it’s a pretty simple game plan.”
Not even a torn muscle on his ribs will keep Peters from doing his best to execute the game plan.
“Mental toughness is going to get me through it,” Peters said. “Just going to have to put up with it.”
