Wright relocated, improving

After one month of intensive care hospitalization treating serious injuries incurred at a home football game on Sept. 5, Comet defensive back Wali Wright is now being treated at a rehabilitation facility.


His mother, Piola Wright, said that the freshman player was moved from John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek to Kentfield Rehabilitation and Specialty Hospital in Marin County on Sept. 28.


"He's doing a good job of recovering. He's coherent," Piola Wright said. "He still isn't speaking, but for the past month, we have all learned how to read lips."


The 25-year-old player suffered from paralysis from the neck down, two fractures in his neck and a swollen spinal cord after colliding helmet-to-helmet with a running back from Los Medanos College during the first play of the season opener.


Wright has since undergone two major surgeries. Doctors inserted two pins into his neck to secure the fractures on Sept. 7 and a tracheotomy was performed on Sept. 10.


Doctors were unsure whether or not he would regain feeling in his limbs, but on Sept. 20, they informed Piola Wright of her son's ability to move his shoulder.


Since then, his mother said he has been able to move both shoulders and he is regaining feeling in his back.


"The doctors say it's going to take him a while to get his nerve system back working," Piola Wright said. "But he's doing pretty good."


Football coach Dave Johnson said the fact that Wright was relocated to a specialized facility shows he must be recovering.


"Hopefully he just keeps (recovering)," Johnson said. "I'm glad that he's feeling better. We still talk about it. Every game, we say a little prayer."


Comet football players said they have not forgotten about their teammate.


Running back Eric McDaniel said that each player wears a black and white sticker with the number "26," Wright's number, on the back of their helmets.


"He's our inspiration now," McDaniel said. "This whole season is dedicated to him, basically."


The fact that the injury occurred during the first game could be traumatizing, receiver Curtis Aguay said, but he hopes that Wright will be able to come back and play football with the team again.


Linebacker Marcelo Magdaleno-Medina agreed.


"When you play football, (injuries) are your worst fear," he said. "We keep him and his family in our prayers."


Magdaleno-Medina said a lot of the team members wanted to see Wright, but due to intensive care unit visiting regulations, only people on a list were allowed to do so.


Piola Wright said that visiting regulations at Kentfield are much more lenient, and her son is now able to see visitors.


Since the majority of Wali Wright's immediate family resides in Southern California, his mother said the family is trying to move him to a rehabilitation facility in Artesia so he can be closer to home. They are currently waiting for approval, she said.


Contact Holly Pablo at hpablo.advocate@gmail.com