Marcell Ateman Nearing Major Checkpoint in Recovery; Redshirt still an Option

Oklahoma State’s leading receiver from a year ago, Marcell Ateman, still has not played a snap in the 2016 season after suffering a foot injury just before the season.

Ateman has been released to return to running, according to Mike Gundy, but only in straight lines. The next step in his road to recovery is expected to come later this week, where he will progress to making cuts. Something that sounds promising to hear, but coaches are approaching with caution.

“You can’t predict whether he’ll be sore or not,” Mike Gundy said via The Oklahoman. “They all progress differently from that injury.”

Even with clear progress being made in Ateman’s recovery process, with six games down and a game this weekend likely to be missed, Oklahoma State coaches know that a return would need to happen quick before a decision to place a redshirt on him is decided.

Ateman is a senior and could return for the final games, pending his recovery, or he could be redshirted by OSU and return next season, a decision Gundy already has in his mind.

“If he can’t comfortably make cuts within a couple of weeks, we have to get together and talk about, ‘Do you want to burn another year?’” Gundy said. “If not, you bring him back [via a redshirt].”

If Ateman were to take a redshirt this year, he could return as the senior leader and perhaps No. 1 receiver in 2017, depending on James Washington’s NFL draft stock and if he decides to stay. Here’s a look at the talented bunch of scholarship receivers who could be on the OSU roster next season:

· Marcell Ateman

· James Washington

· Tyron Johnson

· Dillon Stoner

· Tyrell Alexander

· Jalen McCleskey

· Chris Lacy

· Tylan Wallace (2017 commit)

· Braydon Johnson (2017 commit)

· LC Greenwood (2017 commit)

Ateman’s potential return will ultimately be his decision, but if he doesn’t end up returning very quickly, he will have only a handful of games left to play and make a big impact before testing the NFL waters. So the decision could be made for him, depending on his expectations at the next level.

We’ll know a lot more in the next few weeks, but at the moment it seems that a redshirt for the 6-foot-4 pass catcher is a very viable option at this point in his recovery.