Mack Drees, junior animal science major, returns to the University of Wisconsin-Platteville wrestling team this season as one of the captains of the young Pioneers team.

During the Thanksgiving break of 2011, Drees suffered life-threatening injuries in an ATV accident.

He had multiple fractures in the bones in his face, including a fractured eye socket and a fractured jaw, and a blood clot developed in his brain.  After spending four days in a coma, he was able to leave the hospital two weeks after the accident.

Drees acquired the necessary release to resume his wrestling career from his doctor this summer.

Drees expected his recovery to take a lot longer but said he feels lucky to be able to wrestle again.

His teammates showed their support of his recovery by visiting him when he was released from the hospital and by contributing to a Christmas gift over the last holiday season.

Drees said he still thinks he has a lot to prove because his departure from the team was so abrupt.

“Physically, (I am) light years behind the rest of the team,” Drees said.

His teammate Mike Harman, junior animal science major, disagreed.

“He’s idolized, whether he knows it or not,” Harman said.

Harman’s first reaction to the accident was shock and disbelief.

The team had to keep competing, and they used Drees’ accident as key motivation to continue on and to be successful for him while he was gone.

When Drees returned, Harman noticed his captain’s energy.

“(There was) a spring in his step, but that’s his personality,” Harman said.  “Nothing is going to stop him.”

Chris Walter, UW-Platteville wrestling’s head coach, saw no hesitation in Drees in getting back on the mat.

“He’s a great team player and is an infectious team player in the locker room,” Walter said.

Drees has been working to return to wrestling shape and has moved up to the 133-pound weight class this season.

As for Drees’ goal for the year, simply said: “To win.”