In an almost improbable recovery, Wildcats’ quarterback Nick Foles was dressed, threw warm up tosses before Saturday’s game and even jogged onto the field at Arizona Stadium to participate in the coin toss.  

But when the redshirt junior went down with a dislocated right kneecap 10 days ago against Washington State, Arizona fans feared the worse.

“”The right kneecap popped out and went to the right side of my leg,”” Foles said. “”It was pretty scary, the thought of it. I’ve never had a knee injury, and just to look down at my leg and see the shape I was in, I thought the worst. Definitely thought that it could be over for this year.””

But Foles said he is “”way ahead of schedule”” in rehabbing the injury that usually sidelines players for three to six weeks.

Instead of returning to Arizona after the Washington State game, Foles went to his hometown of Austin, Texas, to begin the rehabilitation process.  

He stayed for three days and visited Dr. Brent Voth and Dr. Jeff Freeman — who have worked on athletes like Olympic sprinter Usain Bolt — of North Star Manual Therapy in Georgetown, Texas.

Foles said he had been going to North Star for eight years and that he attended sessions there for a few hours per day, riding stationary bikes as part of the rehab process. With the help of Voth and Freeman, Foles said he came in wearing a splint and left jogging.

He didn’t take any painkillers; he said he just “”deals with it.”” He has a sleeve-like brace to keep the kneecap in place.

“”It feels good. It’s progressing every day. It’s a day-to-day thing, so that’s how we’re judging it,”” Foles said. “”(I’m) just going into rehab every day a couple times and doing what I can to get it better.””

Meanwhile, Foles’ return to practice yesterday seems optimistic that he will return to the field sometime soon. Although he doesn’t have an exact timeline, Foles said he would continue daily rehab activities to try to get his leg strength and balance back.