College football Week 3 injury report: Oklahoma loses Rodney Anderson for season

The college football injury report for Week 3 sees Oklahoma without their Heisman candidate at running back that could shake up the playoff picture.

College football has hit Week 3 of the season and some big names around the country will missing time due to injury. Oklahoma’s starting running back has been ruled out for the season and a Heisman Trophy candidate has decided to rest this week. Let’s take a look at who may still play this week and who will miss time.

Quarterbacks

Daniel Jones, Duke

Jones suffered a shoulder injury after being driven into the turf on a sack against Northwestern last week. He has been ruled out “indefinitely” for the foreseeable future. In his absence, Quentin Harris will likely get the nod this week against Baylor.

TaQuon Marshall, Georgia Tech

Marshall injured his toe last week against South Florida. Fortunately, the quarterback was cleared to return to action and finished the game. While he should be good for this Saturday, he will still likely have that toe bandaged up and it could impact his play on the run.

A.J. Bush, Illinois

Bush injured his leg last week against Western Illinois and is “questionable” for this week against South Florida. With Bush out last week for the rest of the game, freshman M.J. Rivers took over. While coaches say he should be healthy enough to play, do not be surprised if Rivers starts this game.

Running Backs

Rodney Anderson, Oklahoma

Arguably the biggest injury news this week. Lincoln Riley confirmed earlier this week that Anderson will miss the rest of the season due to a serious knee injury he suffered against UCLA. This is devastating for the Sooners playoff hopes. The redshirt junior has now suffered his third season-ending injury in his college career. He broke his leg in 2015 and fractured a vertebra in 2016. With the preseason All-Big 12 back gone, expect Trey Sermon to carry the load.

Bryce Love, Stanford

Love has been ruled out for this Saturday’s game against UC Davis due to a knee injury. While the Cardinal can certainly win this one without him, it does impact Love’s Heisman campaign. The talented back only has 165 yards through two games. Love will likely return next week, but whether this injury will linger through the season remains a question.

Keaontay Ingram, Texas

Ingram is “doubtful” for Saturday’s big clash with USC. The freshman suffered a knee injury last week and has worn a brace all this week. Ingram has contributed in the ground game heavily the first two weeks and scored a key touchdown last week against Tulsa. Fortunately, Texas has other backs to rely on in Tre Watson and Daniel Young if Ingram is limited or cannot go.

Wide Receivers

Ihmir Smith-Marsette, Iowa

Smith-Marsette injured his ankle while returning the opening kickoff last week. He missed the rest of the Iowa State game and is questionable for Saturday against Northern Iowa. The sophomore is one of the Hawkeyes rising stars at receiver so losing him could hurt Iowa’s depth at that position.

Ahmmon Richards, Miami

Richards is “questionable” for this week against Toledo due to a knee injury that has bothered him. He sat out last week against Savannah State. While Richards could likely play this week, he will likely be held out at least another week or until conference play starts later this month. The Hurricanes need Richards at 100 percent.

DaMarkus Lodge, Ole Miss

Lodge sustained a concussion last week against Southern Illinois. Fortunately, he is listed as probable for Saturday’s game against No. 1 Alabama. The Rebels have arguably the best receiving corp in the country so having Lodge healthy is big going up against the powerful Crimson Tide defense.

Tight Ends

Garrett Williams, Clemson

Williams missed last week’s game due to a knee injury. He is listed as probable for this Saturday against Georgia Southern. The Junior is one of the Tiger’s best blockers and unsung weapons in the passing game, so having him back for this week and hopefully, more games is good news.

Thaddeus Moss, LSU

Moss is “questionable” for Saturday against Auburn with a leg injury. The son of NFL Hall of Famer Randy Moss has missed the first two games and just returned to practice last Wednesday. While LSU still has plenty of weapons, the coaches believe the sophomore has the potential to be as good as his father and are anxious to have him back on the field.

Cole Kmet, Notre Dame

Kmet is doubtful for the game against Vanderbilt due to a high-ankle sprain he suffered last week against Ball State. While rumors are he could return next week, these injuries take time to heal and can really impact a player’s ability to run and cut on routes. Notre Dame has depth at the position in Alize Mack, Brock Wright and Nic Weishar. Mack has started both games so far.

Defensive Stars

Safety Isaiah Pola-Mao, USC

Starter Isaiah Pola-Mao has been ruled out for Saturday’s game against Texas. He sustained a separated shoulder last week against Stanford. Either C.J. Pollard or Talanoa Hufanga will get the start this week.

Linebacker D.J. Beavers, Washington

Beavers is “questionable” for this week against Utah with a foot injury. He was held out of last week’s game against North Dakota. If Beavers is unable to play, expect Tevis Bartlett to start in his place. The Huskies would love to have their entire linebacking corp healthy with Pac-12 play kicking off.

Safety Todd Harris Jr., LSU

Harris missed last week’s game against Southeastern Louisiana due to an undisclosed injury. He is “questionable” for this Saturday against Auburn. With SEC play now in full swing, the Tigers need their secondary healthy.