GROVE CITY — Rob Kunst awoke and the room spun as if the world had been knocked off its axis.

What the Grove City College tight end and Butler graduate thought was merely an inner ear infection turned out to be much worse.

“I woke up Friday morning before the Case Western game with severe vertigo symptoms,” said Kunst, who as on the verge of a breakout season as a junior for the Wolverines last season. “At first I didn't know what it was. The doctors sat me down for that game and went on to diagnose me with a concussion.”

That perplexed Kunst.

He didn't remember taking a particularly hard hit.

His symptoms just started out of the blue.

“It was a cumulative type of concussion,” Kunst said. “It was multiple hits that led to it.

“It was rough,” he added. “There's no other way to say it.”

There was no timetable for his return. Doctors told him he could be back in a week or he could be out for an extended period of time.

It turned out Kunst's concussion was more severe than anyone thought.

For three months, Kunst endured severe headaches that would come on in the afternoon like clockwork. He struggled to keep up with his school work at Grove City College, which has a reputation as being a very challenging academic school.

But Kunst found a way to persevere.

“That was the number one thing,” Kunst said. “Stick with the academics and worry about football later.”

And there was a lot of worry.

Kunst underwent vestibular therapy for his head injury to combat the bouts with vertigo.

“Following Popsicle sticks with my eyes. Following beads on a string. Different things, things that are newer and have become well known and widely used,” Kunst said. “There was definitely some thoughts. Is this the right decision? Is this what we should be doing?”

But Kunst wasn't willing to let a promising career end in such a way, especially after missing a large chunk of time during his sophomore season because of injury.

If doctors said it was safe for him to return to the field, he was going to do it.

“I've learned so much from football,” Kunst said. “I have more I want to learn.

“What's going on right now with Wolverine football, I needed to be a part of this. I couldn't fall off. I couldn't leave.”

Kunst was on the sideline during Grove City's first win after a 33-game losing streak last season.

He remembers watching Cody Gustafson making a first-down catch to seal the 24-14 victory over Saint Vincent.

“It made me emotional,” Kunst said. “It wasn't because I wasn't on the field, but was because I remembered all the hard work. I thought of the kids on campus — when you're an 0-10 program, you don't get a whole lot of respect from people on campus. I was excited to live through my teammates.”

Now healthy and in the best condition of his life, Kunst is looking to finally have the breakout season.

One man who is certain he can do it is Grove City College head football coach Andrew DiDonato.

“He's had two springs where he has been lights out,” DiDonato said. “He had an unbelievable spring for us. Unfortunately, he hasn't been able to make it through a full fall.

“If he stays healthy, he's a weapon nobody knows about.”

Kunst is just hoping to be on the field all season.

“That's the goal. Ten games,” Kunst said. “I can't accomplish anything else if I'm not healthy. This is honestly the most excited I've ever been heading into a season. I've never appreciated being on the field so much.”