Former Boilermaker Ryan Grigson's taken a long road, even once dodging death, to end up back in his home state as the general manager of the Indianapolis Colts.

The former director of player personnel for the Philadelphia Eagles, Grigson is expected to be formally introduced as the Colts' new GM this afternoon.

So who is Grigson?

A Highland High School graduate in 1990, Grigson redshirted his first season at Purdue, but then immediately made a big splash his second season. But probably not in the way you'd expect for a 6-foot-6, 290-pound offensive tackle. In 1991, he was Purdue's short-yardage, blocking tight end, and caught two passes, both for touchdowns. They'd be in the only two receptions of his career.

He started five games his following season, before a bizarre injury forced him not only to the sideline, but into the hospital. In the third quarter of a home game vs. Minnesota, Grigson took a shot to the abdomen from an opponent's helmet, resulting in pancreatitis and kidney failure. He also later developed pneumonia as a result of his injuries.

Grigson, however, didn't immediately leave that game.

"The whole second half was kind of hazy," Grigson said for a story in the April 23, 1993 issue of Gold & Black Illustrated. "I was doing things (on the field) that I probably wouldn't have done. I can recall a play where I totally blew my assignment. The game was on the line and my head just wasn't in there. I really didn't feel any pain until after the game."

The pain came, however. Immediately after the game, which Purdue won, Grigson was taken to a Lafayette hospital, where he was admitted in serous condition. He stayed for five weeks (spanning October to November of '92), spending a few in intensive care as his kidneys shut down for a couple weeks; he was fed intravenously.

He nearly lost his life, and by the time he started making his return to Purdue, both as a student and as an athlete, he had lost 30 pounds.

In one of the more inspirational stories in school history, Grigson returned to full strength by the '93 season, and started 10 of Purdue's 11 games at both tackle positions, and was named the Boilers' Most Improved Weight Lifter. A team captain - he was so well-liked by teammates that during his ailment, they wore an "RG" sticker on the back of their helmets - the following year, he started all 11 games.

"When you're in that situation, you would think you would be real scared but I didn't care," Grigson said then of his hospital stay. "I wanted them to knock me out and do surgery because when you're in that much pain, you just want them to do something."

Now, Grigson's reached the pinnacle of his profession. In Philadelphia for the past nine years - the last two as the Eagles' director of player personnel; the four previous as their college scouting director - Grigson twice interviewed over the last week for Indianapolis' vacant GM job, the last coming on Tuesday.

After beating out seven other candidates, he'll be introduced at a new conference this afternoon in Indianapolis as the replacement for fired vice chairman Bill Polian and GM Chris Polian.

"He was a straight-shooting kid," Purdue athletic director Morgan Burke said Wednesday, recalling Grigson's work ethic in rehabbing while he was a Purdue player. "... If he told you he was going to do something, he did it. When I think of offensive linemen at Purdue, they are generally guys who walk the walk, not talk the talk."

Grigson, 39, has had a long journey to the top of the NFL. He played two seasons in Detroit after being drafted in the sixth round by Cincinnati in 1995. Then, he played one season in the CFL before a back injury forced his retirement.

He had stints as a scout, personnel director and assistant coach in the CFL and Arena League before getting his opportunity again in the NFL, with the Rams, in 1999.

"To me, it's a case of a guy who had a view of what he wanted to do back in 1992-93, who step-by-step-by-step has put himself in position to take one of the premier jobs in the country," Burke said. "I'm pretty darn proud."

Grigson will be the second former Boilermaker in charge of an NFL front office, joining Houston Texans' General Manager Rick Smith. Coincidentally, Grigson's and Smith's careers at Purdue overlapped by a couple seasons; Smith graduated in 1991.

"It's kind of fun to have those guys there," Burke said. "Both were probably the proverbial average to above-average players who were students of the game and now because of that have put themselves in a position where they can use those skills in the management of their program."

Illinois State coach Brock Spack, who was an assistant at Purdue during the early 90s, then again during the Joe Tiller Era when Grigson would return to campus occasionally as an NFL scout, says he's not surprised by the Colts' move. Spack says Grigson has two critical traits: he's personable and a hard worker.

"In this business, you have to be a hard worker," Spack said. "When you're a good recruiter or a good evaluator, it takes a lot of hard work, it really does. You have to be diligent. Being a scout in the NFL or a personnel guy is the same as being a recruiter, really. You have to be very, very thorough. You have to have a very good plan and a good system. You have to be organized, and I would think Ryan would be all those things. He must be, because they don't just hand general managerships over to just anybody. You have to be really good."

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