EAST LANSING - Kyle Ahrens was making a tackle in practice as a high school freshman, jammed his right thumb into the ground and then popped it back into place.
A day later, he played quarterback in a game before learning his thumb was broken.
The summer before his sophomore year at Versailles High School in Ohio, Ahrens thought he sprained an ankle at a basketball team camp. Taking the advice of a trainer, he did high-knee workouts in the water while on vacation the week after, before being diagnosed with a broken lower right tibia.
Playing through pain was never an issue for Ahrens, now a redshirt junior wing on the Michigan State basketball team, but he has limits.