Garnett on road to recovery

West Monroe (La.) 2016 linebacker Layton Garnett turned heads as a sophomore starter in the middle of the Rebel defense.

It's not every day a sophomore finds his way into the starting lineup, but then again there are not many who stand in at 6-foot-2, 230-pounds and have the intelligence and athleticism to handle the task.

However, in 2014 Garnett has been silenced as he has been sidelined with an injury. He suffered an ankle injury at his final camp of the summer and it was thought to be a sprained ankle. Six diagnosis's later it was discovered it was a little more severe.

Garnett had an ankle impingement and he needed surgery. It was not too serious but it required surgery and has caused him to miss his junior season. However he has not given up on football in 2014.

"I will play a little bit this season hopefully," Garnett said. "I might not be at my best but I'm going to try to help."

Recruiting has slowed as a result of his injury but a few college programs have remained in contact and he has taken a few visits.

"I've been talking to TCU and I've gone to a couple of their games," Garnett said. "I've gone to LSU a few times and that's about it."

The atmosphere at TCU really caught his attention.

"Just seeing all the players from West Monroe over there. I just thought it was a beautiful campus. I liked how it was kind of different from others. I liked it over there. It was a nice place. It was good seeing all the guys from West Monroe," Garnett said. "It's just nice. It's a different atmosphere."

Garnett remains on the road to recovery right now, but he can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

"I'm actually four weeks out from the surgery and I'm going to Alabama tomorrow to check things out," Garnett said. "I'll get another MRI to make sure the surgery went well and the healing went well. It wasn't an invasive surgery like a shoulder surgery or an ACL they just took a bunch of scar tissue out."

West Monroe faces Covington in the second round of the playoffs on Friday.