After suffering a freak bench-pressing accident on Monday, Stafon Johnson is on his way to recovery.
The USC running back is awake and communicating by writing and hand signals less than a day after emergency surgery on his throat, according to ESPN.com.
California Hospital Medical Center's trauma director told the Web site that Johnson is giving thumbs-up signs and writing notes to his mother and teammates after undergoing a seven-hour surgery to repair a crushed neck and larynx, sustained when he dropped a bench press on his throat during a weight-lifting session. The trauma director also said that had Johnson's neck muscles been weaker, he may have died from the accident.
The senior's father told ESPN that his son needed a tracheotomy to help him breathe.
Johnson is expected to make a full recovery, but it could take as long as six weeks before he is asked to attempt to speak. He is currently on a ventilator and is being fed through a tube in his stomach.
While Johnson's football future at USC remains in doubt, head coach Pete Carroll is thankful that the running back is recovering.
"He's not talking, but he was doing his wave and writing," Carroll told ESPN.com. "It's very uplifting for his mom and his family and all the guys who got a chance to go down there."
Johnson is USC's second-leading rusher and has accumulated 157 yards and a team-best five touchdowns in 2009.
