Steichen will sit after surgery

Steve Guiremand

Thursday, Sept. 29, 2005 | 9:12 a.m.

Shane Steichen's heart said to continue playing quarterback for UNLV the rest of the season with a badly broken left ring finger.

But Steichen, a 6-foot-4, 200-pounder from El Dorado Hills, Calif., was overruled by his parents, coaches, doctors and some plain old common sense.

Steichen, who broke the finger early in the first quarter of last Saturday's 31-24 loss at Utah State, is scheduled to undergo surgery today to repair the injury and will be out at least 4-6 weeks.

"It's tough," Steichen, who ranks third in the Mountain West Conference in total offense with an average of 261.0 yards per game, said as his teammates practiced nearby at Rebel Park on Wednesday afternoon.

"I don't know what to say. I wanted to play but it was almost like I didn't have a choice."

Steichen said he was told by hand specialist Dr. Colby Young that if he didn't have the surgery now "there was a 100 percent chance (the finger) would be ruined" and he'd need major reconstructive surgery after the season.

"It just seemed like the best situation instead of not having a useful hand the rest of my life," Steichen said. "I hope to be back by the BYU game (Nov. 5). And I still have another season to play next year."

"It's a very significant injury," UNLV trainer Kyle Wilson said. "I don't think he's going to be 100 percent again but we're going to try and get him as close to 100 percent as possible."

Steichen broke the finger right above the middle knuckle after it got smashed between two helmets at the end of a run.

"Really, the bone is just kind of crushed in there," Steichen said. "You usually have a little breathing room in your joint there, but right now the bones are kind of connected ... and it's like one is kind of like sitting on the edge of the other right now. It's like a hinge. And some of the bone in there broke off."

Ouch!

Steichen said he was told today's surgery will last about four hours. Several pins will be inserted to help stabilize the finger. A bone graft using a chip of bone from his wrist area also may be done.

Junior Jarrod Jackson, who has yet to take a Division I snap after transferring in from Grossmont Junior College in El Cajon, Calif., last spring, will start in Steichen's place on Saturday at Wyoming (3-1, 1-0).

"I feel bad for Shane," Jackson said. "I've been in that situation my freshman year (of junior college). In the championship game I tore a ligament in my thumb and someone else came in. So I know what it's like. I feel bad for Shane but at the same time we have to move on and I'm glad I've got the opportunity to play."

Steichen says he expects Jackson to perform well on Saturday.

"Even when he's been my backup the last four weeks he's prepared like he's going to be the starter," Steichen said. "He's a good guy, really. He's always on top of things. He always does things right. ... I think he'll do well."

The results of the MRI won't be known until today. The shoulder is not the same one that forced Kirkland to miss the entire 2004 season after he severely dislocated during a scrimmage in fall camp.

"Hopefully he'll be OK and ready to go," Sanford said.

True freshman Renan Saint Preaux of Immokalee (Fla.) High School spent much of the practice working with the first team offense in place of Kirkland.