OVERCOMING ADVERSITY

After playing in 30 games as a freshman, Michael Polite was limited to just six contests in his sophomore season of 1988-89. Polite had Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare autoimmune disorder that caused numbness in his feet. He returned for an exhibition game ahead of his junior season, putting up 16 points and five rebounds. “It feels good to be back,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of work to do. I was tired. I thought I was in pretty good shape.” Polite appeared to be in great shape in his last two campaigns, leading the Noles with 8.5 rebounds in both seasons. On the offensive end, the 6-foot-7 forward would celebrate a slam dunk by hanging off the rim and kicking his legs. Polite had two double-digit scoring games in the 1991 NCAA Tournament, helping FSU win their first tournament game since 1980.