All of a sudden, adversity took the ball right out of his hands.

After losing virtually his entire senior football season to a devastating elbow injury, Panther Valley graduate Louis Clouser decided to return to Stevenson University as a fifth-year senior.

And his coaches and teammates were glad he did.

One and done?

“I didn’t play varsity my freshman and sophomore years,” he said. “I played running back on junior varsity and special teams for two years, so after the injury, I was left with only one season as a varsity player.”

Clouser came to Stevenson with an impressive résumé from Panther Valley. In 2020, he rushed for 996 regular-season yards and averaged 11.5 yards per carry. He eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark in a playoff game, and has his name printed on a banner that hangs inside the Panthers’ gymnasium.

Mustangs head coach Ed Hottle saw Clouser’s potential before his junior year.

“He is such a hard worker, and the thing that separates him from some other athletes is his commitment to improve,” Hottle said. “To put it another way, Louis was a boy who became a man both in the classroom and on the field.”

Give me the ball

As a junior in 2023, Clouser made the most of his opportunity. He ran for a team-best 154 yards and scored two touchdowns — on runs of 42 yards and a team-best 60 — against FDU-Florham. In the eighth game of the season, he reached the end zone three times in a win over Misericordia.

Clouser set a single-game record at the Division III school by carrying the ball 43 times for 147 yards, and finished the season with 13 receptions for 139 yards.

“I loved carrying the ball 43 times, but it took a toll on my body,” he said. “I was sore all over for the next several days.”

“We utilize players who make plays,” Hottle said. “And in that game, we ran the ball pretty much at will with Louis, who certainly answered the bell.”

Faced with the big decision

Clouser was expected to be the Mustangs’ go-to back in his senior year, but an injury to his elbow ended that plan four carries into the season opener against Rowan.

“I did something a running back is told never to do,” he said. “I planted my arm on the ground to make a jump cut and when I got hit, I dislocated my elbow, and that ended my senior season.”

Doctors later confirmed he had torn his UCL, as well as other ligaments in his arm. The good news: he did not require surgery.

“I had a decision to make — walk away from football or spend weeks and months rehabbing and come back to play as a fifth-year senior.”

Clouser sought guidance from his coaches as he weighed the costs and benefits.

“It’s a very complex issue to come back as a fifth-year senior,” Hottle said. “You have to pay more tuition through loans or money saved. You could lose revenue, because you’re removing yourself from the job market for at least another seven months. From my perspective, I can’t be self-serving and tell a player to stay in the program. And given the choice, I’d rather play a younger player with the same capability, because I’ll have him for more than one year.”

The want and the will

“I knew what I wanted to do,” Clouser said.

Play football.

With no guarantees from the coaching staff, Clouser was determined to earn his way back onto the field — and he did once again.

In his first game this season, wearing a protective brace on his arm, Clouser — a self-described downhill bruiser who likes to run between the tackles — scored two touchdowns against Bridgewater (Virginia), and went on to finish the year with 216 carries for 1,230 yards and 11 touchdowns.

“Louis is a phenomenal human being,” Hottle said. “He always wears a smile, and he loves to play football. He was a tremendous asset, not only to our program, but also to our university.”

Building character

Clouser, who is pursuing a master’s degree in cybersecurity, said Stevenson felt like the right place.

“After growing up in Coaldale and being locked down during the pandemic, I felt I needed to see something new — and it’s worked out well for me,” he said.

A major factor in Clouser returning after the injury was the program’s culture.

“I loved hanging out with the boys, my teammates,” he said. “College is different than high school because you get to build better chemistry with the team.”

From an outstanding career at Panther Valley to the gridiron at Stevenson University, Louis Clouser has proved that a serious setback can become both an inspiration and a motivation — both on the field, and in life.