As was noted over the weekend, Wisconsin running back Montee Ball will resume practicing with his team today, though he will not be ready for contact for about another week.
He also resumed speaking with media on Sunday -- his first time doing so since he was the victim of an “unprovoked assault” earlier this month, the unprovoked part of which is being investigated by Madison police.
You can watch the video of Ball’s interview with the media HERE, but Ball doesn’t provide a lot of information due to the ongoing investigation of the incident.
“I went out with a few friends. We weren’t getting rowdy or anything,” Ball said. “I was heading right back to my place a block away and I was attacked. That’s all I remember.
“It was a last-minute decision to go out.”
The police report states that Ball was present at the location of a fight in the days leading up to his attack, though it’s not believed Ball was directly involved with the fight. However, a witness to Ball’s attack said he heard something along the lines of “one down, nine to go” by one of the assailants, possibly in reference to other UW football players.
Ball stands by the statement that he has no idea who attacked him or why. Still, he felt the need to apologize to his teammates on Friday.
“I felt that as a leader and captain for this team, I felt like I had to get up there and say something to them,” Ball admitted. "[The attack] shows me how much I do live in a fishbowl, and how much of a microscope I’m under.”
Indeed, it’s the second time Ball’s name has come up in the headlines this offseason. He was also ticketed by police for trespassing back in May during a block party. But Ball says those two incidents don’t define him.
“People who know me know how I am.”