Concussion costs Vandy QB Patton Robinette class time

Vanderbilt quarterback Patton Robinette missed all but one of his classes last week because of concussion symptoms, according to his former high school coach.

Robinette has not practiced since suffering a concussion in a loss to South Carolina on Sept. 20, and Vanderbilt coach Derek Mason said he will not play against No. 13 Georgia on Saturday. Instead, freshman Wade Freebeck will get his third start.

Robinette did not attend practice on Wednesday night, and Robinette's former coach at Maryville, George Quarles, said the quarterback only attended one class last week during his recovery.

"I still text (Robinette). It's my understanding that he only went to one class last week," Quarles said. "I think that's the new protocol everywhere. Anytime you have a brain injury, you need to put them in a dark room and make sure there is no stimulation.

"So I think Vandy is being very cautious, just like we would."

Robinette also suffered a concussion at Maryville in the 2010 Class 6A championship game against Smyrna and sat out the second half. He said a year later, while preparing for the 2011 state championship, that he did not remember that previous state title game.

"I don't remember anything about the day, so this is going to be my first state championship as a starter, in my mind," Robinette said in a Nov. 25, 2011 story in the Knoxville News-Sentinel.

On Thursday, Quarles said that was Robinette's only concussion at Maryville and "I am unaware of any other concussions at Vandy. He had a concussion that one time here in 2010, and we were also very cautious. I think he missed two weeks of basketball because of it, but we never had issues after that."

On Wednesday's SEC coaches teleconference, Mason said:

"When you're talking concussions, you're talking about differing symptoms. There are impact tests and protocol in place to give you an idea of the severity of the concussion. Stanford (where Mason previously coached) and Vanderbilt have the same protocol. … Across the U.S. there has been a campaign to get everyone on the same page what to look for and the timetables for the return of a student-athlete. So I think everyone is under the same protocol, but how you administer it, to me, is probably the most important thing. I think Vanderbilt and Stanford have done a great job in terms of making sure student-athletes get the best care and see that they're taken care of. Patton will be out until he is systematically (cleared) of all symptoms of the concussion."

Mason has said several times over the past two weeks that he would rely solely on team doctors to decide when Robinette is medically cleared to practice or play. According to Mason, Robinette has not practiced since suffering the concussion nearly two weeks ago.

"I hope for him that he gets well soon and makes a full recovery," Mason said after Wednesday's practice. "Concussions are something where you just never know. You have to be patient with the doctors and science telling you what he can and can't do."

Reach Adam Sparks at 615-259-8010 and on Twitter @AdamSparks.