LEWISBURG -- Sam Nana-Sinkam has spent his entire football career, which began as a high school sophomore, trying to help the school name on the front of his uniform develop an identity.

It took three years at Manheim Township High School, but Nana-Sinkam and his mates finally got out of the shadows of nearby state power Manheim Central with a 9-1 record and a sectional championship.

Now getting ready for his junior year at Bucknell, Nana-Sinkam believes the Bison are primed to challenge for supremacy in the Patriot League with the likes of perennial favorites Lafayette, Colgate and Lehigh.

It is an approaching opportunity that almost didn't happen for the 6-foot, 232-pound linebacker.

After earning a starting spot at outside linebacker early in preseason practice as a freshman in 2006, Nana-Sinkam felt his left arm go dead in his second college game against Lafayette in 2006.

His left shoulder had slipped out of socket.

No problem. It went back in on its own.

The same thing happened in practice the following week.

Easy out, easy in.

It happened every week the rest of his freshman season in both shoulders.

"Each week, it was a different shoulder," he recalled.

But the shoulders started to need help going back into the sockets. Nana-Sinkam, already undersized at just more than 200 pounds, lost the strength to fight off would-be blockers of 300 pounds or more.

Even though the Lititz resident recorded 85 tackles in his first college season, including 15 in his debut contest, he knew he needed surgery.

The labral tear in his left shoulder was repaired in December 2006, but the surgeon felt the right shoulder didn't require the same procedure.

The second day of preseason drills in 2007, Nana-Sinkam's right arm went dead for the final time.