YPSILANTI — Once the plane touched down in Dallas and Eastern Michigan basketball coach Charles Ramsey switched on his cell phone he knew something wasn’t right. There were numerous messages waiting.Word traveled quickly that prize recruit Marvin Skipper nearly died while undergoing medical tests on his heart.

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     In fact, Skipper’s heart stopped beating and it took quick intervention by doctors at Children’s Hospital in Detroit to save his life on this July day. It was the second time in less than six months Skipper’s heart had stopped while undergoing tests to evaluate abnormal heart rhythms.

“The news scared the daylights out of me,” said Ramsey, now in his third season with the Eagles.

Skipper underwent surgery to implant a cell-phone sized defibrillator in his chest, which would shock his heart if it should stop again.

It’s uncertain if Skipper will ever play again. Skipper likes his chances, even though he’s currently not allowed to even work out.

“It not over until God says it’s over,” said Skipper, a 6-foot-9 forward from Detroit Pershing. “There’s a possibility that I’ll play again. I’m going to take it as that.”

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       His mother, Adrain Caldwell, also remains positive. It was Caldwell who pushed for the defibrillator, despite some resistance from her son.

“Basketball means everything to Marvin,” Caldwell said. “I always tell him to have a Plan B. But I miss his playing days and I know he does, too. He’s a smart kid. He can still make millions (if he doesn’t play as a career) by using his brain.”

Ramsey, who began evaluating Skipper as an eighth-grader, is taking a wait-and-see approach.

Upon hearing about Skipper’s status, Ramsey sought advice from mentor Oliver Purnell, the coach at Clemson who had a player die during the season several years ago while at Dayton.

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     Purnell advised Ramsey to err on the side of caution because he admitted to having recurring nightmares about the loss.

“I’ll be honest with you, Marvin might not ever suit up again,” Ramsey said. “Playing basketball is not the most important thing. The most important thing is that 40 or 50 years from now, Marvin is still around and has a great college education.” Warning signs

Signs of Skipper’s heart problems were noticeable in 10th grade, after a series of dizzy spells that caused him to pass out in practice.

But it wasn’t until last December, when spells came more often, that doctors thought it necessary to have Skipper undergo extensive stress tests.

Skipper missed weeks of his senior cause of his health. That didn’t worry Ramsey too much, though, because Skipper finished the season strong.

“We thought everything was great,” Ramsey said. “Then, later, taking the news about the defibrillator, I thought, ‘Wow, defibrillators are usually what you hear elderly people having.”While in a holding pattern, Skipper is trying to make the most of his time. He has numerous roles with the team: a manager, mentor and teammate. “I just want to still be a part of the team,” Skipper said.