The following is a letter from injured Tech running back Lee Suggs, who underwent surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament and a torn medial meniscus on Sept. 14.

September 18, 2001

Dear fellow Hokies:
These past few weeks have been pretty tough for me. It's really hard to sit on the sidelines and watch my teammates do so well. But your support has made it a lot easier. I wanted to take this time to thank a bunch of people for what you've done for me.

I'd just like to thank all of you guys for the cards and letters you've sent since the injury I sustained on September 1. They've meant a lot to me and I can't thank you enough.

I'd also like to thank the fans who were at the Western Michigan game. That cheer you did during the timeout was great and I was totally surprised by it. That was really cool.

After the game, I was still signing autographs and you don't know how much that meant to me. For you guys not to forget who I am and still want my autograph was real humbling. You guys haven't given up on me and that's driving me to get back so I can play for you.

I'd like to thank my family for their role in all of this, especially my mom and dad. My mom stayed with me in the hospital and that was nice.

I'd also like to thank everyone who sent me an email through my Web site. A lot of you told me about your ACL injuries and others just wrote in to tell me they were thinking of me. I got emails from all of the country. In all, I know I got well over 100. That's amazing, because I didn't know that many people knew me and cared about me that much.

My teammates have been great and I want to thank them for their support. They've been by my apartment and offered help. I really appreciate them and miss being around them.

And I want to wish Keith Burnell, Kevin Jones and the rest of "The Stallions" the best this year. You guys know we have a tradition to uphold and I don't want you slacking off!

Right now, my first goal is to get off these crutches within a week. They're so annoying! After that, it's a week-by-week thing. I want to be back to around 90 percent for spring practice and back to full strength for fall practice. It's going to take a lot of hard work, but I'm determined to get back out there.

It's been hard to go through this. I miss being on the field and I miss being in the locker room with my teammates ... and we still have nine more games left plus a bowl game. But your support has helped me a lot.

Thanks for keeping me in your prayers and thoughts. You don't know how much that means to me. I hope to be ready for Spring Ball, but if not, I'll see you August 31st when we take on LSU. The first time I take the field is going to mean a whole lot. I know you guys will be loud and I'll be amped up since I won't have played in a year.

Once again, I thank you for all you've done for me in the past couple of weeks. Virginia Tech truly has the best fans around.

Go Hokies!

Lee Suggs, #22

12/1 - Miami
Blacksburg, Va.
Injured