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Report: Alabama's John Metchie III Believed to Have Torn ACL Injury After Georgia Win
December 5, 2021
Alabama wide receiver John Metchie III is reportedly believed to have suffered a torn ACL in Saturday's 41-24 win over Georgia in the SEC Championship Game, per ESPN's Mark Schlabach.
If that's the case, it's a huge blow to the Alabama offense as he will miss the College Football Playoff.
Metchie missed the entire second half of Saturday's game after injuring his leg on a noncontact play while running a route with 56 seconds remaining in the second quarter. The 21-year-old cut back and fell to the ground clutching his left knee before walking off the field under his own power.
"John Metchie is probably going to be out now, and we have a couple other guys that may be injured," Tide coach Nick Saban said. "It creates a lot of opportunity for a lot of other players. Hopefully, we'll be able to get them to step up."
Metchie finished the game with eight catches for 97 yards and a touchdown. His loss is a tough blow for Alabama, as he led the team with 90 catches and ranked second with 1,045 receiving yards, in addition to seven touchdowns.
With Metchie sidelined, Jameson Williams shined against Georgia, catching seven passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns. The 21-year-old has 68 catches for 1,445 yards and 15 touchdowns this year.
In addition to Metchie and Williams, Slade Bolden finished Saturday's game with five catches for 54 yards, and tight end Jahleel Billingsley had two catches for 27 yards. With Metchie sidelined, both players will need to step up in the postseason.
However, quarterback Bryce Young put together an impressive performance against the top-ranked Georgia defense, even without Metchie. He threw for 421 yards, which is an SEC title game record, three touchdowns and rushed 40 yards and another score on three carries.
If Young can pull off two more similar performances in the playoffs, Alabama could be national title winners for the second successive year. The Crimson Tide will learn their playoff fate when the CFP rankings are released on Sunday.