College Football Championship Report (Key injuries/suspensions)

By Greg DePalma, OFN Executive Producer

College Football Championship Report (Key injuries/suspensions)

College Football Championship Report (Key injuries/suspensions)

Disclaimer…Keep in mind in the college game, many times a player can be categorized as doubtful or probable and the exact opposite result will occur. That’s why we never use percentages other than 100% to determine a players playing status. We will also rarely report on a player who is considered probable, but that doesn’t mean he’ll end up playing after all. This report should be just another valuable aspect of your research, not a defining one.

Programming…Don’t forget to tune in every Friday on the Ourlads Football Network’s College Football Preview show for our in-depth coverage including more details on the playing status of key players as well as game analysis, trends, the latest odds and picks.

Short-term…We created this report to inform you of the key injuries/suspensions that could impact a team’s performance from week to week. If a player is not on this list, then either the coaching staff has kept this information from the media or we do not believe it will have an impact.

Arizona State…DE Koron Crump is out indefinitely with a knee injury and will miss the game at Oregon tonight. Crump leads the Sun Devils with four sacks.  

Ball State…Starting QB Riley Neal will miss his second consecutive game with a leg injury when the Cardinals travel to the defending MAC Champions at Western Michigan today. Neal has been a three-year starter since early during his freshman season. Senior back-up Jack Milas, who has 11 starts since his freshman season, started last week in Ball Stat’s loss at Western Kentucky. Milas is a significant drop-off in talent from Neal. RB James Gilbert will more than likely miss a second consecutive game with a hand injury today. Gilbert was a 1st-team MAC rusher last season gaining over 1,300 yards on the ground. Back-up true freshman Caleb Huntley is doing a good job filling in for Gilbert by averaging one more yard per rush attempt (5.3) than Gilbert so far this season. To top it off, leading receiver (22-310-2) and true freshman Justin Hall is considered a question to play today with an undisclosed injury.

Baylor…WR Chris Platt is out for the season with a knee injury sustained last week against Oklahoma. Platt is one of the Bears top-two receivers (16-401-5) along with Denzel Mims (18-406-6). There is a drop-off in production after the pair, so it’s unknown at this time how the loss of Platt will affect the passing game.

Boston College…The offensive line for the Eagles is a mess. Starting guard Elijah Johnson has been out for the season with a knee injury sustained during the spring. Starting center Jon Baker is also out for the season with an ACL injury that occurred in Week 1 against Northern Illinois. Center Shane Leonard has been out since the spring with a knee injury and it is unknown when he’ll return. Right now the Eagles are using true freshman Ben Petrula at center even though he never played the position in high school. He is considered one of their top prospects though. And Aaron Monteiro is another starter who may not play today against Central Michigan. On defense, senior linebacker Connor Strachan, last year’s leading tackler, is out for the season with a knee injury. Strachan had totaled 155 tackles the past two years. He’s been out following the Wake Forest game on 9/9.

Buffalo…Starting QB Tyree Jackson looks like he’ll miss the Kent State game today with a knee injury he sustained last week against FAU. Jackson is a physical freak for the position (6’7, 245) and offers potential down the road, but he’s not a reliable player yet and the Bulls might end up better for it as junior Drew Anderson gets a shot today. Anderson will make his first start following a solid debut in relief (7-9-109-TD) last week as Buffalo edged the Owls by 3.

Central Michigan…The Chippewas will be without their top-two receivers again this week in WR Corey Willis, a 2nd-team All-MAC last year and TE Tyler Conklin. Willis (1,087, 9 TD) was the team’s only thousand-yard receiver last year and has been out since a big performance (8-140-TD) at Kansas in Week 2. Conklin has missed the season since a foot injury in camp. Conklin is coming off a solid season too (42-560-6). Senior WR Mark Chapman is the only remaining threat in the passing game. For what it’s worth, the Chippewas were 2-0 with Willis and are now 0-2 without him.

Clemson…Kicker Greg Huegel is out for the season with an ACL injury. Huegel kicked in the National Championship game the past two seasons and was an All ACC 2nd-team kicker.

Connecticut…Top WR Hergy Mayala is out for about 4-6 weeks with an ankle injury. Mayala leads the team with three receiving TDs. The Huskies already had depth issues after their 1,000-yard receiver graduated after last season, Noel Thomas.

Florida…Leading rusher Jordan Scarlett and leading receiver Antonio Callaway continue to serve suspensions resulting from fraud-related felony complaints. There is a good chance they won’t play this season.

Georgia…QB Jacob Eason is out with an ankle injury with true freshman Jake Fromm taking over. Many consider Fromm a better overall prospect that Eason.

Kent State…QB Nick Holley is out for the season with a knee injury sustained at Marshall in a Week 3 contest.  Holley was a difference-maker for a weak offense leading the team in rushing last season with 920 yards and 10 TDs and again this season with 207. Back-up George Bollas is a huge drop-off. Bollas has a 4/10 TD/INT ratio over his three-year career. Bollas has some running ability, but nothing like the dynamic Holley. Bollas is only getting the start because top back-up Mylik Mitchell is also out with a knee injury with no timetable for his return.

Kentucky…LB Jordan Jones, an SEC 2nd-team player is most likely out with a shoulder injury against Eastern Michigan today. Jones led the team last season with 109 tackles and 15 ½ tackles for loss.

Louisville…WR Jaylen Smith is out with a wrist injury. He did not play last week against Kent State. Smith is the team’s leading receiver (22-379-2).

LSU…Star RB Derrius Guice is a game-time decision against Troy today with a knee injury.

Maryland…The Terps are down to their fourth-string QB Max Bortenschlager against Minnesota today. Tyrrell Pigrome is out for the season with a knee injury against Texas and Kasim Hill is also out for the season after an ACL injury against UCF last week. Caleb Henderson is still recovering from a foot injury, but is supposed to be available to play today if needed.

Michigan…QB Wilton Speight suffered an undisclosed injury against Purdue last week and it is unknown if or for how long he’ll be out. John O’Korn passed for over 3,000 yards during his freshman season in Houston, but has not seen much action for two years since transferring.

Middle Tennessee…QB Brent Stockstill should miss his third-straight game today at FAU with a shoulder injury. The junior has amassed over 7,000 yards through the air the past two seasons with a 61/16 ratio. Sophomore back-up John Urzua is not even close to being that accomplished. Urzua did not play well at Minnesota in his first start, but he did improve against weaker competition when the Raiders beat Bowling Green last week. It won’t help Urzua if star receiver Richie James misses another game after injuring his ankle against the Gophers. James came into the season with 2,971 yards and 20 TDs the past two years combined. James is a question to start today.

Oregon State…QB Jake Luton suffered a serious back injury against Washington State two weeks ago and his status is better than expected. He might return soon, but for now Darrell Garretson, a former Utah State transfer will get the call. Garretson began last season here as the starter until a mid-season knee injury ended it early. Garretson is a decent player and might provide the Beavers with a spark considering Luton has been average at-best to start his career here after transferring from Idaho.

South Carolina…Electrifying WR/KR Deebo Samuel is out for the year with a leg injury and it will be a huge blow for the program. Samuel almost single-handedly helped the Gamecocks beat both NC State and Missouri to open the season before injuring himself against Kentucky. He led the team last year with 783 yards on 59 receptions and was off to a tremendous start again this season which included two kick-off return scores. Sophomore WR Bryan Edwards and junior TE Hayden Hurst will need to step up. Edwards has 859 yards and four TDs on 65 receptions since last season while Hurst has added 761 yards and three scores on 59 receptions. LB Bryson Allen-Williams will also miss the rest of the season with a shoulder injury. Allen-Williams was the team’s No. 2 tackler last season with 75 and added 8 ½ tackles for loss.

Texas…1st-team AA left-tackle Connor Williams is out with a knee injury with no word on when he’ll return.

Washington…WR Chico McClatcher is out for the year with an ankle injury sustained last week in the Huskies win at Colorado. McClatcher was the team’s third-leading receiver last season (31-574-5) and was the team’s second-leading receiver so far this season (10-128). With no current depth behind star Dante Pettis, this could be an issue for the Huskies moving forward.

Long-term…We created this report to inform you of the key injuries/suspensions that could impact a team’s performance the most all season long. If a player is not on this list, then we do not believe it will have long-term an impact. We move players down to this list after the first week.

Auburn…QB Sean White was dismissed from the program after being arrested on 9/17 for public intoxication. White was the starter last season before a shoulder injury in November not only ended his regular season, but the Tigers chances of winning a national championship as well. White came back only to break his arm in the Sugar Bowl and the injuries would eventually impact his ability to compete with JUCO transfer Jarrett Stidham for the starting job this past spring. White led the SEC in completion percentage last season and would have provided the Tigers with a competent backup and potential starter.

FAU…WR Kalib Woods was charged with two felony counts of battery over the summer and his status is up in the air for the season. Woods was the Owl’s leading receiver by far (68-934-TD) last season.

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