The most devastating moment came on the cart ride.
It wasn't that Ennis Rakestraw knew he had torn his ACL in practice on Oct. 5, 2021. It also wasn't that his sophomore season was suddenly over after a promising freshman campaign.
As Rakestraw was leaving the practice field riding on a trainer's cart, what hurt most was the phone call he made.
He immediately called his mom, Shamika Quigley, to tell her what had happened.
"I was trying to be positive then," Quigley said. "But at the back of my mind, I'm thinking, oh my God, you know. It's about to be a big change."
That was the start of a 10-month span shaped by pain.
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For Rakestraw, the pain from the devastating injury — the first of his football career — left him wondering if he would ever return to the level of player he once was. Quigley, meanwhile, was states away in Texas while her son navigated a grueling recovery.
Determination, as it turns out, eventually nullified the pain.
Rakestraw's determination was sparked by a 30-word note from his mother that evoked tears.
Ten months later, that mother-and-son bond is a reason Rakestraw was able to recover in time to be fully cleared for the 2022 season.
"My mom told me I got it," Rakestraw said. "The only say-so I need is my mom."
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Understanding the magnitude of Rakestraw's pain lies in how his Missouri career began.
A video of coach Eli Drinkwitz sprinting down the halls of the football facility when Rakestraw committed to Missouri will live on as one of the most memorable moments in the early days of Drinkwitz's Tiger tenure.
Rakestraw was a three-star recruit who had earned the attention of Alabama and Texas. It came down to the Tide and the Tigers.
Rakestraw chose Missouri and was one of the first recruits to bring notoriety to Drinkwitz's recruiting acumen. The first-year coach had successfully outpaced Alabama and Texas on the recruiting trail.
Rakestraw found motivation in teams paying attention to his profile after his senior season in high school.
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"My recruitment blew up real late; I wasn't the five-star," Rakestraw said. "I didn't do all the camps and I feel like I was overlooked. So I had a chip on my shoulder."
Rakestraw started 10 games for the Tigers as a true freshman corner during the 2020 season, leading the team with six pass breakups.
That success is why the Tigers' defensive back room brought major upside into 2021. Allie Green and Akayleb Evans transferred from Tulsa, as Rakestraw competed with them for playing time at outside corner.
He played in four games before tearing his ACL, with his last game coming in a massive blowout loss against Tennessee, which spurred changes for the Missouri defense.
Battling through change and struggles was just another fight for Rakestraw in 2021. He was already battling an injury in the early parts of the season.
That's why when he went down during a practice drill, he knew.
"We was hiding it," Rakestraw said. "I already knew what happened. We all knew what happened. And they was telling me hopefully it's the MCL. And I was like, no.
"I know what it is."
It was the end of his season. It was also the beginning of the resolve for Rakestraw. His mother began finding her own strength then, too.
"Once we figured out it was exactly the ACL, I was scared," Quigley said. "But I was not going to let him see me sweat, because I was the strength."
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Quigley gave birth to Rakestraw when she was 16 years old. It's part of the reason why she wanted her son to experience life at its fullest.
"I didn't get to live the college life," she said. "That's why I wanted it for him."
However, she didn't expect football to take her son's life to new heights. She was focused on Rakestraw's education.
It wasn't that Quigley believed he wasn't talented enough at the sport. She knew he always had the heart to compete at a high level.
When Rakestraw was playing at the Pop Warner level, Quigley said he was the smallest player on the field. Youth coaches loved the heart he played with. Still, there were some that turned Rakestraw away from their teams because of his size. Quigley remembers Rakestraw crying, wondering why these coaches wouldn't play him.
"I would always send him out there and just tell him, every time you touch the field, you show them who you are," Quigley said. "You show them why you deserve to be out there."
That helped form the chip on Rakestraw's shoulder. It was the driving force in how he led his high school teams to state championships and earned a spot playing football in the SEC.
Rakestraw was living. It allowed Quigley to live, too.
"Because of the accomplishments that he's been able to get to so far, it's allowed me to kind of see the world through his eyes," Quigley said. "Without him, I would've never thought to visit Columbia. I wouldn't have the relationships with the great people that I've met."
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That's what made Rakestraw's injury all the more devastating.
In prior trips to Columbia, Quigley came to watch her son live his dream. It was viewing the kind of success every parent wants for their child.
Seeing an injury take that away was devastating. Quigley said she remembers Rakestraw falling into her arms when she came to Columbia before his surgery. Worst of all, she couldn't stay with him in his most difficult moment.
"I couldn't be there," Quigley said. "There wasn't a bandage that I can put on as a mom. So the only thing I had was my faith in God, my faith in him. And the only thing I could do is just call and motivate him."
Quigley found another way to motivate her son. She penned a note before she left Columbia and returned to Texas after Rakestraw had surgery to repair his ACL.
Those 30 words sat on Rakestraw's mirror in Columbia. In all, the note spanned six lines on a half sheet of torn notebook paper.
There initially was only one person who knew it existed. Quigley wrote the note, crying in between penning its lines, and didn't even tell her husband she was writing it.
"Son," the note reads, "I know it's going to be hard days ahead but keep pushing for me! I love you and I know you got it! Head up and chest out young bull!"
Signed, Mama.
Her note stoked motivation and the desire to move forward. It also sowed love. Above all, the note was Quigley telling her son to do this for her.
"I never asked him to do anything for me," Quigley said. "But I know if I told him to kind of push for me, I know every time he got down he'll think about, 'I have to do this for my mom.'"
Immediately, Rakestraw felt every feeling his mother conveyed in those words.
"I just went into my room, and I seen it on my mirror," Rakestraw said. "I just was like, OK, you got this. I got this."
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Earning the full clearance from the Missouri football staff opens up Rakestraw for the opportunity to regain his starting spot at cornerback.
In a new defensive system under coordinator Blake Baker, Rakestraw is a favorite to start as an outside cornerback opposite Kris Abrams-Draine.
Rakestraw's determination has even caught the eye of his new position coach, cornerbacks coach Al Pogue. He lauded how well Rakestraw handled his recovery and counts him as an example for the future.
"That's a testament to the hard work and dedication he's put in," Pogue said. "That's something that I could always refer to if it happens somewhere else. I can just say, 'Hey, here's a guy who's been through it.'"
The head coach has been impressed, too.
Drinkwitz said one of Rakestraw's attributes the team values most is his toughness. That brings out a competitiveness Drinkwitz said was missing in the team's spring practices.
Now, Drinkwitz said it's about Rakestraw finding consistent confidence in his repaired knee.
"It's all about having confidence in his knee, confidence in his cutting, but he looks strong," Drinkwitz said. "He's worked really hard this summer to be at 100%."
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Rakestraw hasn't missed a beat. Drinkwitz said he finished out a drill for another player on the first day of preseason camp when that teammate couldn't continue.
The defense has something to prove this season after struggling in 2021.
That's a familiar place for Rakestraw.
He can use that chip on his shoulder to prove he's a dominant player. In turn, he can help his defense thrive and prove it's better in 2022 than what some might remember from 2021.
It's why Rakestraw thanks God for the last 10 months.
He remembered what kind of player he wants to be and got a reminder from his mother about what he is capable of.
"I came up the underdog," Rakestraw said. "I'm back to my normal habitat."
Chris Kwiecinski is the sports editor for the Columbia Daily Tribune, overseeing University of Missouri and Boone County sports coverage. Follow him on Twitter @OchoK_ and contact him at CKwiecinsk@gannett.com or 573-815-1857.
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: How Ennis Rakestraw's relationship with his mother aided his recovery
