When fans think about the fortunes of their favorite sports teams, the injury status of the athletes is often one of their chief concerns. Coaches share that concern, and their first priority is to keep players healthy enough to contribute to the team. When a player is injured, coaches must not only help that player on the path to recovery but must also deal with the impact on their team. As lineups are reshuffled and players find themselves taking on new roles in the team structure, the impact of an injury can reach far beyond its implications for the individual athlete.

For bigger sports, the injury of a key player can change the fortunes of an entire season. An example familiar to Husky fans is this year's football team, which got off to a 4-2 start that spurred hopes for a turnaround season.

When quarterback Isaiah Stanback went down in the fourth quarter of October's game against Oregon State, however, things started going downhill fast. The Huskies lost the Oregon State game and went winless in their next four games, including a dismal home loss to 0-9 Stanford.

As the Huskies continued their downward spiral, the question put most often to coach Tyrone Willingham was whether or not he was going to start freshman Jake Locker, a quarterback who came to the UW with high expectations for his contributions to the team.

Before Stanback's injury, Willingham's decision to sideline Locker and preserve his extra year of eligibility went largely unquestioned. Stanback's injury forced a reconsideration of Locker's status, with Willingham ultimately choosing not to burn Locker's redshirt by bringing him in to aid the struggling Huskies.

An injury can have equally far-reaching implications in other sports, including some that might seem more individual in nature. Although tennis players compete as individuals when they are on the court, competition at the college level is far more of a team sport than it may seem. Players spend hours together training and at practice, and at times even live together. They play against each other all the time and often play together as coaches try out different doubles combinations.

Knowing that a single win or loss on an individual court can mean the difference between a win and a loss for the whole team, tennis players feel the pressure to compete for their teammates and school. Players come to rely on each other, and in some cases look to certain teammates to get a win in a pressure situation, or to get a quick point on the board for the team.

"One of the things you might not realize about tennis is that good teams have faith in their teammates on the court," UW men's tennis coach Matt Anger said. "If they've been leaning on some guys and one suddenly gets hurt, it can affect confidence."

Anger has some personal experience with this, though he has been lucky during most of his coaching career and avoiding many serious injuries of his players. During the Huskies' 2004-05 season, when the men went 20-5 and tied for first place in the Pac-10 conference, they headed into the post-season with high hopes.

Though they made it to the second round and finished the season with a final ranking of No. 14 in the nation, the injury of senior Peter Scharler prevented the Huskies from going as far into the NCAA tournament as they expected.

"We had to work with Pete's shoulder all year, and then he aggravated it in Ojai (the NCAA individual singles and doubles tournament that occurs just before the team portion]," Anger said. "Even though we made it to the Sweet Sixteen, we definitely felt [his injury) in our performance."

Shoulder injuries are some of the most common on the tennis court, with the occasional ankle turn or hamstring pull thrown in as well. Shoulder injuries are also common in crew, swimming and throwing sports such as baseball and softball.

While contact sports such as football can yield injuries such as sprains and head injuries, injuries in other sports are often due to overuse of muscles or joints, and to athletes who try to ignore or play through pain without getting help from the trainers.

Trainers are the most important tools coaches have in their quest to prevent injury from shaking up the team. The strength and conditioning coaches of the athletic training department work with athletes and coaches on activities such as warm-ups, stretching and adequate nutrition — in addition to weight training and conditioning — to lessen the chance of injury. Ten athletic trainers work for the department, each associated with one or two specific sports and aided by student interns.

"We train all year to develop flexibility and core strength to avoid injuries," UW men's crew coach Bob Ernst said. "We're really lucky this season — it takes a lot of effort with our supplementary training and sports medicine to prevent injury."

Although no injury prevention program is entirely failsafe, the UW's top-notch athletic trainers and facilities help ensure an environment in which athletes can safely perform to the best of their ability. When an athlete is injured, coaches must not only ensure that their player gets the best treatment possible, but also that their team continues to function and win.

"Injuries are just like anything else: you deal the best you can, whether by getting that person to the point where they can still play, or getting others to fill in," Anger said. "That's part of high-level athletics."

Reach reporter Risa Pavia at sports@thedaily.washington.edu.