shifting problem?

[Ressler]

Alright so I just drove my car from CA to VA, without much problem. Recently, the cars been tough to get into 1st and reverse (5 speed manual). Today I was doing some work on it and took it for a test drive, went to put the car into 1st to pull into the driveway and it wouldn't go into gear, and not thinking just gave it muscle and something popped out/broke. The shifter now moves freely, and I'm guessing it was the shift linkage? Is this accessible by removing the center console? Any help would be appreciated as I need to get it back on the road asap! Thanks!