Despite his success during high school, Ray had played the past two seasons with a bump on his left shin. Because it was pain-free, both he and his father wrote the bump off as a bone bruise.

But months passed and the bump hadn’t disappeared. In fact, it slowly began to feel painful. About a month prior to signing with the Spartans, Ray went to a local clinic to have the bump evaluated. Also under the suspicion it was a bruise, doctors attempted to drain blood from the bump. When that failed, they ordered a biopsy.

In early March, the biopsy came back showing a cancerous tumor on his left tibia.

“(With) cancer, you think of older people, like 60, 70 years old,” Ray said. “You don’t wish it on anybody, but you don’t expect it to be in a 17-year-old kid like me. It felt … like my life was just really starting. I felt like me going to college was the starting point.”

‘I thought my life was over’

The diagnosis from the clinic was that the tumor was in the bone marrow of Ray’s tibia. In search of a second opinion, Ray and his family went to the University of Chicago.

The second biopsy also showed a tumor, but indicated that it was located outside the bone rather than in the bone marrow or on a joint — a big break from the initial diagnosis, considering most tumors in the marrow or joints reduce the chances of an athletic comeback.

The doctors diagnosed Ray with osteosarcoma, the most common type of bone cancer.

“It was bad,” Ray said. “It was about a week after signing day and the doctors just sat down with me and said, ‘You possibly could have a bone tumor.’ I was like, ‘Man, I have to go through at least close to a year of chemo,’ and was down. It sucked, it was a heartbreaker almost. I thought my life was over.”

With hopes of shrinking the tumor before surgery, Dr. Steven Gitelis, an orthopedic surgeon at Chicago’s Rush Presbyterian Hospital, opted to start Ray on 10 weeks of chemotherapy.

On July 30, 2007, Ray underwent a 14-hour surgery to remove the tumor.

Missing out

For the rest of the summer and throughout the fall, Ray stayed at home in Chicago. Although he couldn’t be on campus or around the team, MSU head coach Mark Dantonio, offensive line coach Dan Roushar and other coaches kept in contact with Ray.

Roushar was on a recruiting trip in Chicago during Ray’s initial diagnosis and was able to attend several of the oncology meetings with Ray and his family.

“(I) was able to meet with the oncologist for the first meeting and I’ve sat through a lot of different meetings for different reasons and that one took the wind out of me,” Roushar said. “It really made you appreciate what we all had.”

Despite the serious nature of his condition, Ray remained focused on the Spartans. He and his family drove to East Lansing periodically for games so he could be around the team.

When he wasn’t at Spartan Stadium, Ray spent most of his time in bed hooked up to an IV.

Although he credits the support system of his family and friends for keeping his spirits high, the absence of football was wearing on him.

“They always kept me up, but it was still like, ‘I miss ball,’” Ray said. “I missed it to the extent that if I sat there and watched it, I just couldn’t do it. It brought back too much stuff about not doing it.”

Although Ray sometimes had trouble watching football, he kept in touch with Dantonio, who constantly relayed Ray’s situation to the team.

“(Coach Dantonio) was always like, ‘Yeah, I called Arthur up today but he wants to know how you guys are doing, he’s not worried about himself,’” senior quarterback and captain Brian Hoyer said. “To have a guy who’s that motivated to get back with his teammates and be at college is just an inspiration. When you have a rough day you just think about what he’s gone through … it really puts things into perspective.”

The setback

Five months after his surgery, doctors cleared Ray to enroll at MSU for the spring 2008 semester. Ray was excited to begin his college experience, but his time on campus was short-lived. Eight weeks after classes started, pus began leaking from the surgical incision that was made in his knee. After assessing the situation, MSU’s medical staff decided to send Ray back to Chicago so he could be looked at by Gitelis.

Back in Chicago, Gitelis discovered the work on his bone had become infected due to the weakening effects chemotherapy has on the immune system. Although infections are common with most osteosarcoma patients, larger operations carry a risk between 1 and 3 percent greater.

In July, Ray underwent another surgery to remove the 6-inch portion of his tibia that was originally replaced in June. In order to ensure the infection would perish, Gitelis kept disinfectant on the bone for a week. While the infected portion of his tibia was being disinfected, a metal rod surrounded by bone cement was inserted into his leg for support.

Nearly a full year after his initial surgery, Ray had to start his recovery from scratch.

Back on campus

Ray’s post-surgery recovery went smoothly and he arrived back at MSU in time for the 2008 fall semester. Still on crutches, Ray has been attending classes and football practices.

Every day, he spends time in the weight room working on his upper-body strength and performing other exercises that don’t put pressure on his leg. Most of the time, he rides a stationary bike, which is more for cardiovascular fitness than recovery.

He spends practices on the sidelines riding a bike, doing other workouts and actively watching the offensive linemen. He also watches film in the video room with his teammates, mentally preparing for the game even though he can’t play.

“It’s great, I wish I could get in there right now,” Ray said of being back at practice. “Today, they were doing one-on-one drills and I’m like, ‘Man, give me somebody’s pads, I’ll get in there right now.’ I’m a competitor. I love being around the guys and I love doing this.”

Getting back on the field

Although Ray’s recovery is going relatively smoothly, challenges continue to arise. About a week ago, Ray received word that he’ll have to spend another six weeks on crutches, mainly for precautionary reasons. As for what comes after that, no one knows for sure.

“Our hope is that he’ll be able to walk by then, but that’s all going to be predicated on what the medical staff says,” MSU strength and conditioning coach Ken Mannie said. “Nothing is set in stone with him, it’s truly a day-by-day process with him — not even week-by-week — it’s truly day-to-day.”

Despite news of the setback, Ray is doing fine. His smile and personality illustrate how happy he is to finally be back in college and surrounded by his teammates.

“Watching the guys, I got that feeling again,” Ray said. “When I was at home watching football, it kind of hurt because I hadn’t played the game in a year, but now I got that feeling again.”

He continues to stay upbeat, as the most important part of his recovery is under control — staying cancer-free. His next step will be regaining the ability to walk.

After Ray conquers walking, he’ll have to strengthen his leg to get it ready for running. Then, he’ll have to build his endurance so he and his leg can be ready to endure the physical demands of being an offensive lineman.

Gitelis said he doesn’t know whether Ray will be able to play football again, adding that he, Ray and others “can’t even begin to think about football” at this time.

Dantonio echoes Gitelis’ sentiments that Ray should focus on taking baby steps, but he said he hasn’t lost hope that Ray will play football again.

“I think the first thing he has to do is be able to walk, then run, then move from there,” Dantonio said.

“That’s the dream and we’re going to try to keep the dream alive for him. Anything is possible. I’ve seen all kinds of things.”

Depending on how rehab goes this winter, Ray believes he can be ready for the beginning of the spring season in March. But he said a more realistic expectation is to be back for preseason camp in August.

Although he dreams of once again putting on his shoulder pads and running out onto the football field, Ray hasn’t lost sight of what he still has to overcome.

“I knew it was going to be rough, but I’m up for it,” Ray said.

“I’m young, so I have all the time in the world. Coach D has always supported me and I know they’re not going to rush me back. I have time to get back to normal (and) have a normal life. Then I’ll worry about being a football player.”