Bryce's Story

At 6-foot-5 and 325 pounds, Texas A&M’s Bryce “The Mountain” Foster is a dedicated athlete. In fact, he excels at both Division 1 football and shot put, a track and field event, but the All American offensive lineman’s goal is to play in the NFL.

“Every day, I ask myself if I am working hard enough to get where I want to go,” he said. Bryce wants to use that work ethic and his natural talents to play at the top of the game and provide for his family.

Things were looking good. Bryce was named a top NFL draft prospect by ESPN. As a promising 4-star recruit, Bryce was projected to be a first- or second-round pick in 2024. And in 2022, the Aggies awarded him the title “Most Explosive.” Then a season-ending injury left him on the sidelines.

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Sidelined by an ACL Injury

“It was at the end of the Alabama game, and I was trying to go on a game-winning drive,” Bryce said. “I took a weird step and felt a pop in my leg. It hurt really badly for about 15 seconds and then it went away. I told the trainer, ‘I’m fine, I’m fine.’”

Bryce didn’t realize how damaged his knee was. He walked off the field and then returned to finish the game. Because he had so much muscle in his leg, the trainers couldn’t see obvious swelling. An MRI, however, showed a serious tear of his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).

“One of the trainers called me and said, ‘You tore your ACL,’ and I knew my season was over,” Bryce said.

ACL Reconstruction

That’s when he contacted Dr. Walter R. Lowe, Chief of Orthopedic Surgery at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center. Dr. Lowe reconstructed Bryce’s ACL using a patellar tendon graft and performed a lateral extra-articular tenodesis, a procedure to support the Arthrex ACL reconstruction using the patient’s own iliotibial band to help reconstruct the area.

After the surgery, Bryce tackled recovery and rehabilitation like he does everything else—with dedication and determination.

“I looked at Dr. Lowe and said, ‘I’m going to be all the way back in both shot put and football.’ I was really confident in saying that,” said Bryce.

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Bryce Returns to College Football, Continues to Aim for the NFL

Just 122 days after surgery, Bryce competed in shot put and placed sixth in the highly competitive Southeastern Conference.

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Today, Bryce is back playing for the Aggies while preparing for the 2025 NFL draft.

“An injury like this isn’t fun, but it’s not the end of the world,” he said. “I am back doing everything I used to—cutting, sprinting, lifting. I can do it all. I am excited for the adventure ahead.”

Dr. Lowe had no doubt Bryce would achieve his goals. “Bryce is back playing football solid as ever.”

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This real patient was compensated for the time they took to share their personal experience.

Surgeon is a paid consultant for Arthrex Inc. For questions, please contact Arthrex Medical Education.