MU defender Prince taken off field on stretcher

COLUMBIA - Reserve corner back Muir Prince was taken off Faurot Field on a stretcher toward the end of Missouri’s final scrimmage of the pre-season, past a shaken Coach Gary Pinkel and teammates knelt in prayer.

“He got knocked out,” Pinkel said. “Hopefully he’ll be okay. We’ll have to deal with that when he gets to the hospital.”

About 6:10 p.m., from University Hospital, Pinkel reported that Prince had feeling in all his limbs. An e-mail from MU athletic department spokesman Chad Moller to the media stated:

"That is obviously outstanding initial news. The medical team at University Hospital is still treating and assessing him, and when we get further reports I’ll pass them along as appropriate."

Rex Sharp, assistant athletic director in charge of sports medicine, said Prince was conscious when he was taken from the field. Asked if Prince was moving any part of his body at that time, Sharp said: “We didn’t want him to move.”

Prince, a 5-10 and 185-pound senior from DeSmet High School in St. Louis who sat out the 2008 season after transferring to Mizzou from Notre Dame, was injured blocking on a punt return.

The returner, Jasper Simmons, had reversed field and Prince was caught in a blindside situation, knocked off his feet by the block of Marcus Malbrough, a 6-5 and 250 pound defensive end playing on the punt return unit.

At first, with Prince being attended to near the west sideline, practice continued. But as the stretcher was called for, every player and coach came over to join Pinkel, who stood over his injured player as medical personnel attended to Prince.

Henry Josey, a freshman tailback, called the incident “a real gut shot.”

Josey could not bring himself to move to close to knot of people attending to Prince.

“I just stayed back and prayed,” Josey said.