College Football: 10 Most Important Injuries of Spring Practice

It could just be a matter of closer media scrutiny, but it seems as if players have been injured in spring practice at an alarming rate this season.

USC's Su'a Cravens, Silas Redd and George Farmer all suffered knee injuries, and Farmer will sit out the season.

Arizona wide receiver Austin Hill is out for the season with a torn ACL.

Florida had only six offensive linemen healthy for part of spring practice, while Clemson, Michigan and Colorado all lost quarterbacks to knee injuries.

And that's just for starters.

Injuries are an unfortunate part of the game, an aspect that sometimes gets overlooked and ignored.

Nevertheless, it is very real and can put a serious monkey wrench in a team's season.

The injuries found in this list are the 10 most significant that could potentially have the biggest impact in 2013.

10. Russell Bellomy, QB, Michigan

Russell Bellomy was one of the early casualties of spring practice, suffering a torn ACL back on April 1.

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Michigan announces that quarterback Russell Bellomy suffered a torn ACL. Out indefinitely.

— CollegeFootballTalk (@CFTalk) April 1, 2013"

Choose to scoff all you want, but Bellomy's injury means the Wolverines have little to nothing behind Devin Gardner at quarterback.

While Bellomy is not exactly the second coming of Tom Brady, he provides a modicum of experience at the position behind Gardner, having been in the program since 2012.

Should Gardner be injured—knock on wood—the Wolverines are going to be in severe trouble due to the current lack of quarterback depth.

9. David Gilbert, DL, Wisconsin

Wisconsin is going through enough change this offseason, switching from its 4-3 defense to the new 3-4, as implemented by new head coach Gary Andersen.

Defensive end David Gilbert did not suffer his injuries in spring practice, but he did announce his plan to retire from football due to multiple foot injuries.

Gilbert leaves a gaping hole, as he was the Badgers' leading tackler on the offensive line last season and finished the season second in tackles for loss with 9.5

Wisconsin is already dealing with new starters in the secondary and at linebacker, and it will now have to find an adequate replacement for Gilbert if they have any hope of reaching the Rose Bowl for a fourth-consecutive season.

8. Oregon Offensive Line

Oregon will be looking to reassert superiority in the Pac-12 in 2013 without Chip Kelly and his ever-present visor at the helm.

That resurgence will need to be keyed by quarterback Marcus Mariota and a stellar running game featuring Mariota and De'Anthony Thomas. But in order for those players to be productive, the offensive line must be intact and able to perform at an elite level.

Mana Greig (knee), Hamani Stevens (toe), James Euscher (shoulder) and Tyler Johnstone (leg) are all scholarship offensive linemen who have suffered injuries in spring practice.

Those injuries left six scholarship offensive linemen in spring practice for a team who likes to run a frenetic offensive pace.

If any of these injuries are re-aggravated or someone fails to rehab as quickly as anticipated, things could get interesting at the O-line for new head coach Mark Helfrich.

7. Jadeveon Clowney, DE, South Carolina

For South Carolina fans, just hearing the words "Jadeveon Clowney" and "injury" in the same sentence are enough to induce panic.

So when it was announced that Clowney would sit out part of the Gamecocks' spring with a neck injury, the panic meter started to rise.

Clowney is a monster, nearly impossible to block and will be the best player on the field in every game next season.

While the injury has been dismissed as nothing he wouldn't play through in the regular season, just the thought that he is injured is a scary proposition for fans.

Should it develop into something more severe or Clowney overcompensate and injure something else in the process, it would be disastrous for South Carolina.

6. Florida State Running Backs

So as it stands, Florida State has three running backs (Devonta Freeman, James Wilder, Jr., Mario Pender) who missed at least part of spring practice due to injury.

While none of the injuries appear to be too severe, having your entire depth chart of running backs enter the summer a bit beat up tends to put a damper on things.

All three are expected to be back for the fall, and all three are going to be needed on this offense—which is breaking in a new, inexperienced quarterback.

5. Malcolm Mitchell, WR, Georgia

At the beginning of April, Malcolm Mitchell tore his meniscus and missed the remainder of spring practice.

The team anticipates that Mitchell will be back for fall and provide a spark to an offense who needs somebody to step up at the position in the absence of Tavarres King.

Mitchell was set to be a key piece of the offense and a great weapon in the passing game for Aaron Murray.

This injury, while not career or even season-ending, leaves the Dawgs looking for some help at the position.

Mitchell played four games on defense last season before transitioning to wide receiver and caught 40 passes last season, jumping back into the offense on the fly.

While he will be fine and contribute this season, his injury just means the wide receiver's coach at Georgia will have another concern heading into the fall on top of Michael Bennett's recovery and Chris Conley's continued improvement.

4. Trey DePriest and Xzavier Dickson, LB, Alabama

Alabama linebacker Trey DePriest has been a key piece of a defense that has been the best in the nation the last two seasons, so a broken foot in spring practice that requires surgery is a concern.

The injury to DePriest means that 'Bama is down to only two inside linebackers for the near future, and the team lost the experience that DePriest brings at the position.

Xzavier Dickson and DePriest provide a solid part of the linebacker rotation for the Tide, and with Dickson also struggling with a knee injury, the Tide are a little short on experience at the linebacker position entering the summer.

If both guys recuperate from their injuries successfully, the Tide will be excellent on defense yet again, but any complications, and there will be some cause for concern.

3. Florida Offensive Line

Jessamen Dunker, Ian Silberman, Chaz Green, Max Garcia, Jon Halapio and Trip Thurman are all offensive linemen at Florida who were out at various points during spring practice due to injury.

Going into the spring game, the Gators had only been practicing with six offensive linemen, and changed the format of the spring game to accommodate the injuries.

The Gators need a cohesive unit in front of Jeff Driskel if they are hoping for anything close to the season they had in 2012.

Most of these guys will be back in the fall; however, the Gators have to shore up the offensive line—which has not been great in recent seasons to begin with—and every snap is valuable when trying to do that.

The lack of experience for these guys over the course of spring practice is concerning, and Driskel had better be prepared for a long season if the offensive line doesn't get together for plenty of practice in the fall.

2. Gabe Ikard, OL, Oklahoma

Apparently snapping the football is an hazardous occupation.

Oklahoma center Gabe Ikard, who anchors the Sooner offensive line, broke his hand snapping the ball on March 10 and was not involved in any kind of contact drills or practice for the rest of the spring.

Ty Darlington got some experience last season when Ikard went down for a time and got reps with the first team in Ikard's absence, so that is a definite positive.

However, with a new starting quarterback under center and questions surrounding the ability of this team to compete for a Big 12 title this season, having Ikard miss reps with the first team is not a good thing.

The Sooners have to hope that this is not an injury that comes back to haunt Ikard during fall practice and the regular season.

1. Austin Hill, WR, Arizona

This is a big one.

Arizona returns with the nation's leading rusher from last season, Ka'Deem Carey, and as a team ready to make strides in the Pac-12 South in its second season under Rich Rodriguez.

And then stuff like this happens, putting a serious crimp in the works.

Wide receiver Austin Hill, who finished second in the Pac-12 last season in receiving yards, suffered a season-ending injury to his ACL in practice on April 10, 2013.

Hill's impact on the offense was going to be huge, as the Wildcats are breaking in a new quarterback, and having an experienced receiver with excellent hands roaming the field provides a security blanket for an inexperienced quarterback.

The Wildcats are going to again have an excellent rushing attack, but without the option provided by having Hill play wide receiver, the Wildcats will have a difficult time keeping the offense balanced.