Injuries That Have Had Biggest Impact on 2014 College Football Season
With only three weeks left in the 2014 college football regular season, the chase for the inaugural College Football Playoff has come into sharp focus. Tuesday’s release of the latest College Football Playoff Top 25 sparked more debate among fans who believed their team deserved a higher ranking and set the table for a frantic finish.
If your team is in the top four, or close to it, you’re in a good mood. If not, you’re probably pretty unhappy. While there are many factors that go into a successful season, one of the most important is beyond a coaching staff’s control.
Injuries can make or break a season, depending on if key players can stay healthy for the most important games on the slate. They can change a team’s chances of beating its most talented foes, often pushing younger, less experienced players into the spotlight (often with negative results). Here’s a look at the injuries which have had the biggest impact on this college football season.
Oregon LT Jake Fisher
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A good offensive line fits together like a Jenga block. Take the wrong piece away, and it all falls apart. Oregon found that out earlier this season with senior left tackle Jake Fisher. Fisher is one of the best offensive tackles in the Pac-12, capably protecting Heisman Trophy candidate Marcus Mariota’s blind side.
But when Fisher was sidelined with a left leg injury, the Ducks offense looked a little lost. In games against Washington State and Arizona, Mariota was sacked 12 times. Arizona handed the Ducks their only defeat of the season, a 31-24 decision in Eugene on Oct. 2.
Minus Fisher, Oregon averaged 31 points per game offensively. With him in the lineup, the Ducks have averaged 49.8 points per game. It’s a good thing that he came back as quickly as he did, or Oregon’s College Football Playoff hopes really would’ve been derailed.
Georgia TB Todd Gurley
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Todd Gurley’s 2014 season will be a classic case of “what might have been.” When he was on the field and healthy, Georgia's junior tailback was one of the most dynamic players in college football.
In the Bulldogs’ first five games, he piled up 773 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on just 94 carries, averaging an impressive 8.2 yards per carry. Then came a four-game NCAA suspension connected to $3,000 in payments for signing autographs for memorabilia dealers, which sidelined him until last week’s game against Auburn.
Gurley was his old self, carrying 29 times for 138 yards in the Bulldogs’ 34-7 rout of the rival Tigers. Unfortunately, it was likely the last we’ll see of him collegiately. He suffered a torn ACL, ending his season prematurely. Gurley will likely declare for the NFL draft, and no one would blame him. 247Sports' Gentry Estes expects the prospect, although Georgia coach Mark Richt wouldn't confirm it:
"Todd's been fantastic. Without a doubt one of the best running backs I've ever seen and ever coached. He practiced hard, played hard, loved the big games and played his heart out for Georgia. I'm just really, really proud that I had an opportunity to coach him.
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The injury robs a Bulldogs team fighting for an SEC title of its best overall player. Freshman Nick Chubb has stepped into the lead back role nicely, rolling up 1,039 yards and nine touchdowns. But we’ll always wonder what Gurley could’ve accomplished in a full, healthy season.
Washington State QB Connor Halliday
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Let’s get one thing clear: Washington State is not a good team. The Cougars are 3-7 entering this week’s game at Arizona State. They aren’t a College Football Playoff contender, or even a Pac-12 North contender. But with Mike Leach and the Air Raid offense in place, they’re a fun group to watch, passing with impunity.
Senior quarterback Connor Halliday was at the center of that offense, throwing and throwing and throwing. Entering a Nov. 1 game versus Southern California, he was averaging 479.1 passing yards per game and was on pace to challenge the FBS single-season passing mark of 5,833 passing yards set in 2003 by Texas Tech’s B.J. Symons, another Leach protege.
But it wasn’t to be. Early in the game, Halliday had his leg folded underneath him on a sack, breaking his ankle and ending his season. The Cougars weren’t making national headlines, but Halliday’s quest to break the single-season passing record would’ve been exciting to track.
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Auburn DE Carl Lawson
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Last season, Auburn defensive end Carl Lawson had an excellent debut as a freshman, making four sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss for the BCS runner-up Tigers. He was expected to play an even bigger role this fall, especially following Dee Ford’s NFL departure.
However, Lawson underwent surgery to repair a torn ACL in early May, a big blow to the Tigers' pass rush. There was a possibility that he could return and play this fall, but Auburn coach Gus Malzahn acknowledged this week to AL.com's Brandon Marcello that it probably wouldn’t happen, leading to Lawson taking a redshirt season.
His absence has been felt on Auburn’s defensive line: The Tigers have failed to get a consistent pass rush this season, and with three losses, they’ve fallen out of the chase for the SEC West and a College Football Playoff berth.
Ohio State QB Braxton Miller
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Remember mid-August? Strain your brain to recall the panic Ohio State fans felt after senior quarterback and Heisman Trophy candidate Braxton Miller re-injured his surgically repaired right shoulder, forcing a redshirt season.
That pushed redshirt freshman J.T. Barrett into the starting lineup, allegedly before he was ready. And following a slow start (Barrett completed nine of 29 passes for 219 yards and three interceptions in a bad 35-21 home loss to Virginia Tech), the freshman has showed marked improvement.
Barrett is a dual-threat quarterback. He’s thrown for 2,356 yards with 29 touchdowns and eight interceptions, while also adding 771 rushing yards and nine touchdowns. How good has Barrett been? He has worked his way into the Heisman Trophy conversation and Ohio State has found its way back into the College Football Playoff mix.
Meanwhile, Miller’s starting position (once thought to be secure next fall) isn’t so secure, according to coach Urban Meyer. Last week, Meyer told Doug Lesmerises of The Cleveland Plain Dealer that "competition brings out the best" in players, referring to his quarterback situation. Meyer continued by saying:
"I think fortunate and blessed are two things, because a lot of people would want either one of them. Cause I think they're both excellent quarterbacks, excellent quarterbacks, and we'll worry about that day when it comes. But we're very fortunate to have those guys.
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NFL.com's Chase Goodbread reported that Miller will evaluate his options, which include transfer, the NFL draft or switching positions. Thanks to Barrett’s exploits, Ohio State hasn’t missed him much.
Notre Dame LB Joe Schmidt
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Notre Dame linebacker Joe Schmidt has the kind of story that college football fans love to read about. Schmidt, a former walk-on, defied the odds and became the Fighting Irish’s starting middle linebacker this fall, serving as the defense’s on-field captain and getting his teammates in place before each snap.
He was a talented player and an emotional leader. But that story came to a premature end this fall when Schmidt suffered a fractured and dislocated ankle against Navy, ending his 2014 season. He led the Irish with 65 tackles.
Without him, an already shaky defense has fallen off a cliff. The Irish allowed a combined 98 points to Arizona State and Northwestern and have disappeared from the College Football Playoff picture. It might have happened regardless, but Schmidt’s unfortunate departure hastened Notre Dame’s fall from the national title chase.
Ole Miss WR Laquon Treadwell
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Ole Miss’ 35-31 loss to Auburn on Nov. 1 was one of the most painful defeats of the 2014 season, in several ways.
With 90 seconds remaining, the Rebels trailed by four points when Treadwell, their best receiver, caught the ball and barreled toward the goal line. He was dragged down by an Auburn defender, and the play was ruled a touchdown.
However, replay review showed that Treadwell lost the ball before crossing the goal line and that Auburn had recovered the fumble. Making matters even worse, Treadwell suffered a fractured left ankle and broken fibula on the play, ending his season. His fumble was the difference in the game, and it knocked the Rebels out of the SEC West and College Football Playoff pictures.
Treadwell is big, athletic and fast. He caught 48 passes for 632 yards and five touchdowns this season, but the sixth that never came will haunt him and the Rebels for some time to come.
Clemson QB Deshaun Watson
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This fall, Clemson’s hurry-up, no-huddle offense has been a Jekyll and Hyde affair. Or rather, Stoudt and Watson. The difference in the Tigers offense when senior quarterback Cole Stoudt has the controls and when freshman Deshaun Watson is under center has been striking.
In two full games after supplanting Stoudt as the starter, Watson threw for 702 yards with eight touchdowns against one interception and Clemson averaged 46 points per game.
But he suffered a broken finger against Louisville, missing most of that game and three full games after it. He returned against Georgia Tech, but suffered what looked like a potentially serious left knee injury that was later diagnosed as a bone bruise and strained LCL (lateral collateral ligament). He’s doubtful for this week against Georgia State.
Stoudt, meanwhile, has been awful. He has thrown for 1,444 yards with five touchdowns against eight interceptions. At Georgia Tech, he completed as many passes to his teammates (three) as he did to Yellow Jacket defenders, with two returned for touchdowns in a 28-6 defeat.
It would have been fascinating to see what Clemson’s offense could have accomplished with a healthy Watson at the controls. We’ll to wait until next fall to truly see its potential realized over a full season.
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