As part of its cheerleader of the week photo featurette, SI.com has the first comments from Oregon cheerleader Katelynn Johnson since she sustained a concussion. While on the field following the Arizona-Oregon game in Tucson, Johnson was struck in the head by a bottle.

Johnson revealed that she actually lost consciousness for some time after she hit in the head by the projectile, which was launched from a fan in the Arizona stadium stands.

Johnson:

 Everyone was on the sideline celebrating and it was such a great rush, but as we started to see items flying at us, the celebrating turned into a panic/fear.

“We were cheering the team off the field when I got hit in the head by something. My head hurt but I remember a police officer yelling at us to grab our belongings and run to the middle of the field. We were somewhat in the field when I looked at a fellow cheerleader and he asked if I was OK… That was it.

The next thing I remember is my best friend [Amanda Pflugrad] talking on the phone over me in the hospital. The entire rest of the trip was a blur, but my parents picked me up at the airport and I am headed towards full recovery. I am doing much better and cannot wait to get back out on the field and the court.

So does this means that helmets will soon be standard issue for cheerleaders and all field personnel at University of Arizona football games? Don’t laugh, that policy would’ve prevented Johnson’s serious injury. (Anytime you lose consciousness, it’s serious kids.)

There’s no specifics from Johnson on her current condition, only that she’s still recovering. Let’s hope she’s back to full strength soon.

She doesn’t sound like a litigious person to me, but goodness knows there’s a lot of folks who would already be in court if such an act was perpetrated on them. If she doesn’t fully recover, do you think a lawsuit in her behalf directed at the bottle thrower and possibly the school should be under consideration?