DeVante Parker Injury: Updates on Louisville WR's Foot and Return

Updates from Monday, Aug. 25

WDRB's Rick Bozich provided a time table for DeVante Parker's return:

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A broken bone on the outside of his left foot will sideline University of Louisville star receiver DeVante Parker for six-to-eight weeks. He is likely to miss at least five games, starting with the Cards' season opener against Miami on Labor Day. He will be operated on Monday in Charlotte, N.C.

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Updates from Sunday, Aug. 24

WDRB's Rick Bozich has the latest on Parker:

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DeVante Parker, the University of Louisville's best receiver, traveled to Charlotte, N.C., on Sunday to visit Dr. Robert Anderson, a nationally recognized orthopedic specialist for foot and ankle injuries.

Parker injured his left foot Friday night during practice. The U of L players have had the weekend off before they resume preparation on Monday for the Cards' season opener against Miami Sept. 1 at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium.

Parker is not expected to be available for the Miami game but the Cards' coaching staff will have more information on his availability after the exam.

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Updates from Saturday, Aug. 23

Parker took to Twitter on Friday night to reassure fans:

Original Text

The Louisville Cardinals received some potentially devastating news on Friday. Prolific senior wide receiver DeVante Parker injured his foot in practice, and, according to Pat Forde of Yahoo Sports, it doesn't sound good:

Furthering concern about the wide receiver's status, Paul Myerberg of USA Today reported exactly which specialist Parker was going to see:

Based on the tone of each tweet, this injury is being taken very seriously.

At 6'3" and 208 pounds, Parker is one of the most talented receivers in the nation. He erupted last season in the Teddy Bridgewater-led offense, accumulating 55 receptions for 885 yards and 12 touchdowns—all career highs.

While Louisville isn't ranked in the preseason top 25 due, in part, to the departure of Bridgewater—he led the Cardinals to the 16th-ranked passing offense last season—the team is hoping sophomore quarterback Will Gardner can keep up the pace—mostly due to the significant impact of Parker.

Head coach Bobby Petrino weighed in on what Parker means to the team during the ACC media day, via Jeff Greer of The Courier-Journal.

Said Petrino, "[Parker]'s really special. He has a combination of size and strength. He can really control his body and make different catches in the air. The thing that excites me as much as anything is his ability to run after the catch. He's a special talent."

If Parker does miss any significant amount of time, Louisville will be without its signal-caller and top two receivers from a year ago—Damian Copeland also departed from the team last season.

In that instance, we could see this offense become far more run oriented, as senior running back Dominique Brown returns for another season after averaging 5.1 yards per carry in 2013.

Keep a keen eye on this situation as it develops—the outcome will severely affect the Cardinals' impending season.