USF Kicker Hospitalized After 35-Foot Fall

((HT: TBO.com/McMurphy))

University of South Florida sophomore kicker Maikon Bonani ((pictured, thanks Tampa Tribune/Iskowitz)), who fell an estimated 35 feet from a gondola at Busch Gardens Saturday afternoon, suffered a cracked vertebra in his back and remained at St. Joseph's Hospital Sunday.

"Our entire program is praying for Maikon and happy that the injury was not life threatening," USF coach Jim Leavitt said. "I was able to visit him (Saturday night). He's in pain, but doing fine and resting."

Bonani was in fair condition on Sunday, said Jacqueline Farruggio, a spokeswoman at St. Joseph's Hospital.

The accident occurred Saturday afternoon while Bonani was working as an attendant on the Skyride at Busch Gardens.

According to Busch Gardens, after Bonani sent a gondola out of the station, he thought the door of the car might be unlocked and held onto the gondola to check it. Bonani then held onto the gondola for about 50 feet. He was about 35 feet off the ground when he let go.

Bonani landed in a landscaped area near Jungala.

According to Busch Gardens, there were three guests in the Skyride car at the time of the incident, but no one else was injured.

On Saturday after the accident, attraction officials gathered employees who operate the Skyride and as part of the meeting reinforced the park's safety policies.

"We took the opportunity to remind everyone about our safety procedures," said attraction spokeswoman Jill Revelle.

Operators are trained to hit an emergency stop button if they notice any problems with the ride, she said.

The ride was re-opened Saturday.

The Skyride aerial tram ride covers a span from the Crown Colony area all the way to the Congo on the opposite side of the park, according to the park's Web site. The Skyride also travels over the Serengeti Plain and to Stanleyville.

Bonani, 20, is a graduate of Lake Wales High School. At Lake Wales, Bonani was the school's valedictorian and could have started at quarterback or wide receiver, said his high school coach Rod Shafer.

Bonani also was Polk County's player of the year in soccer and the school's No. 1 tennis player.

As a freshman at USF last season, Bonani won the starting kicking job after two games. He made his collegiate debut in the Bulls' third game against Kansas. He badly missed his first field goal attempt, hooking a 41-yarder wide left. However, Bonani made a 43-yard field goal with no time remaining, giving USF a 37-34 victory against the No. 13 ranked Jayhawks.

He finished the season making 15 of 21 field goals.

It's unknown if Bonani will be able to play this season. The Bulls open the season Sept. 5 against Wofford. If he doesn't play, he would be redshirted and would still have three years eligibility remaining.

Senior Delbert Alvarado, who handled the field goal and extra point duties until losing his starting spot to Bonani, would likely take over the kicking duties. Alvarado has made 25 of 42 field goals, including a Big East record 56-yarder against Syracuse in 2006. Alvarado also handles the Bulls' punting duties and has 40.2 yard career average.