Injured Bremen quarterback showing progress

Carson Kimball, the Bremen quarterback who suffered a spinal injury in a football game Friday night, felt sensations in his toes Tuesday and maintains high spirits, his football coach said Tuesday.

“He has been given a very, very long road to recovery,” Bremen coach Davis Russell said. “Every day, he’s had one small victory, which is huge. His motto right now is one hour at a time, one day at a time, one week at a time.”

Kimball had surgery Saturday morning for a crushed C6 vertebra, Russell said. The C6 vertebra is in the lower neck. Kimball’s father posted on social media that surgeons replaced the vertebra with a titanium one.

On Sunday, Kimball was able to rotate his wrist again for the first time, Russell said. On Monday, Kimball’s toes moved as a reflex, and he felt a burning sensation after he was given a shot in the abdomen, the coach said.

“Today he is feeling sensations in his toes,” Russell said.

Russell said that Kimball remains in good spirits.

“He’s actually lifting us up,” Russell said. “Yesterday the coaches came into work, and everybody was kind of in the dumps and moping around. The first text I got was from Carson to me and all of our senior players saying, ‘Y’all fly around at practice today and kick McNair’s butt.’ It’s cool that he’s been uplifting us. It testifies to what kind of young man he is.”

McNair is Bremen’s home opponent Friday.

Kimball’s injury occurred last Friday night when he took a hit in the fourth quarter of Bremen’s game with Bowdon. Kimball was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, about 45 miles from Bremen’s home field in west Georgia.

Russell said that Kimball might be released from intensive care soon to begin rehabilitation at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta.

“I told him Shepherd Center is no joke, it’s rehab boot camp,” Russell said. “He said ‘Coach, I’m ready.’ I told him he’s going to get up and walk out, but it’s going to take time. He said, ‘I know, I’m going to walk out.’”