The first sensation that swept over JD Ponciano as he landed on the Holt Arena turf was, of course, excruciating pain.

On the first play from scrimmage in Idaho State's loss to Northern Colorado last weekend, the senior wide receiver caught a screen pass moments before Bears linebacker John Eddy flattened him with a thunderous hit. The impact dislocated Ponciano's left shoulder.

Soon after the pain came another strange sensation: nausea.

"It's a really gross feeling," Ponciano said. "I felt like I was going to puke until they put (the shoulder) back in. After that, it wasn't as bad, but it's very high up there with the most painful injuries I've ever had."

Because of the shoulder injury, Ponciano's status for Saturday's game at Northern Arizona is iffy. But the Lumberjacks would be foolish to formulate a game plan that doesn't take Ponciano into account.

Remember, this is the player who suffered a horrifying hit to the head three weeks ago against Eastern Washington, got sent to the hospital and sat out an entire week of practice and still played the following game against Sacramento State.

Despite dislocating his shoulder twice against Northern Colorado, Ponciano still caught six passes, and he's certain he can do just as well Saturday.

"If I can go, I'm going to go," Ponciano said. "The only way I won't go is if I physically can't do it. I've told everybody this: Unless my heart stops beating, there's no way I'm going to just stop."

Ponciano's dislocated shoulder is the latest in a long line of ailments he's suffered in his career.

He's had multiple concussions. He's had surgery to repair separations to both his shoulders. During a game against Central Washington in Week 4, Ponciano limped out of the game after suffering a bone bruise to his kneecap. But his last two injuries have been by far the most severe.

Still, Ponciano soldiers on. When pain is at its sharpest, like it was in his shoulder last week, Ponciano often thinks about the three people close to him who have died in the past year: a former high school teacher Gordon Patterson, a childhood friend Brandon Hendrick and his grandmother, Clementine.

Ponciano sports a tattoo on his right shoulder of his grandmother's cookie jar, for which she was famous.

"It kind of puts things in perspective where you just feel lucky to be able to play," Ponciano said. "This is the last year that I'm going to do it. You just think, 'There's only (four) more times I'm going to play football. There's no way that I'm going to miss it unless I have to.'"