KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE - Tennessee reserve center Chuck Prugh remained hospitalized in critical condition for a fifth day Wednesday as his teammates tried to move on without him. <br>
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``Our thoughts and prayers are with Chuck and his family. I think the thing he'd want us to do is kind of carry on, go to the practice and continue to improve,'' quarterback Casey Clausen said. ``I think he's gotten better a little bit as each day has gone on.'' <br>
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Prugh has been in intensive care at University of Tennessee Medical Center since Saturday. Hospital officials said Wednesday his condition remained critical. <br>
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Team officials have not said whether doctors have diagnosed Prugh's illness. They have suspected he has a virus but won't given any details except to say they do not believe he is contagious. <br>
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``He continues to be monitored closely and his evaluation is ongoing,'' team doctor Val Gene Iven said in a statement. <br>
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Prugh, a senior from Maryville, transferred to Tennessee in 2000 from Carson-Newman as a walk-on. He was awarded a scholarship this fall as he moved up the depth chart to be starter Scott Wells' backup. <br>
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Prugh's roommate Jason Respert, an offensive lineman, talked with one of Prugh's sisters. She said her brother's temperature had reached 104 at one point. He reportedly came down with flu-like symptoms early last week and tried taking antibiotics. <br>
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``I knew last week there was something seriously wrong with Chuck because Chuck has never complained about anything in his life,'' Respert told The Tennessean. ``Nothing's ever wrong with him, and he's always in great spirits. I knew there was something.''