Georgia Tech Football: Jackets' Julian Burnett's Career Likely over

It appears that one of the rising defensive stars for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets may miss the entire 2012 season with an undisclosed injury.  

According to a report in The Augusta Chronicle on Monday, senior linebacker Julian Burnett has been bothered by an injury that apparently stems from a tackle he made during the 2011 Sun Bowl versus Utah.

Little more has been revealed publicly in terms of specifics, however head coach Paul Johnson did confirm that the injury was not a concussion, which was suspected by many when Burnett left the Sun Bowl and had to be helped off the field.  

In an Atlanta Journal-Constitution article in January, it was revealed that the star linebacker's injury was likely a serious one.  Coach Johnson implied then that the injury may be career-ending when he offered that "there’s a lot of guys who are playing and have gone through it, but they've come out on the other end, that they've determined it’s okay for them to play. It happens a lot. It’s a violent sport, high-contact.”

It appears as if the matter may not be clarified any time soon, as Johnson also offered that “if Julian wanted to shed light on it, he could."  Thus far the specifics remain a mystery.  

It will be important for someone on the defense to step up and fill Burnett's shoes moving forward, as Jackets fans had begun to take note of his impressive play during the 2011 season especially.