Is Ben Bryant Playing Today? (Latest Injury Update for Tulane vs. Cincinnati in Week 13)
By Reed Wallach
The Cincinnati Bearcats are in a must-win situation to return to their third consecutive AAC Championship game, but will there be a new quarterback under center?
Starting QB Ben Bryant left the team's 23-3 win over Temple last week in the first half with a foot injury, and was spotted in a boot on the sidelines. The team turned to the highest rated recruit in program history, freshman Evan Prater last week to finish the game, but the team now welcomes Tulane, a far better team than Temple.
Will Bryant be back this week or is it Prater's opportunity to take the Bearcats to the conference title game?
Here's the latest:
Latest Ben Bryant Injury Update
Friday Morning Update: Pete Thamel of ESPN reported that Bryant will miss the rest of the season with a foot injury.
Sources: Cincinnati QB Ben Bryant will miss the rest of the season with a foot injury. Redshirt sophomore Evan Prater will make his first career start for Cincinnati (9-2) against Tulane (9-2) today (ABC, noon). https://t.co/sTpWMZRFOy
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) November 25, 2022
It's worth noting that the word postgame last weekend was that Bryant could have returned to the game. Head coach Luke Fickell opted against it, but was coy about his starting quarterbacks availability ahead of the game on Saturday against Tulane.
Luke Fickell did not have an update on QB Ben Bryant. There was an initial hope that he could come back but they nixed that at halftime.
— Justin Williams (@Williams_Justin) November 20, 2022
Fickell praised how Evan Prater played in the second half. #Bearcats
Luke Fickell did not offer a definitive update on QB Ben Bryant and his injury ahead of Friday vs Tulane. Fickell doesn't expect Bryant will be able to take a ton of practice reps on a short week, but that it could be a game-time decision between Bryant & Prater on Fri. #Bearcats
— Justin Williams (@Williams_Justin) November 22, 2022
It could be gamesmanship, or protective measures, but this was the tweet from Saturday that shared that Bryant had crutches and a boot:
Cincinnati Bearcats QB Ben Bryant is on crutches with a boot on his right foot.
— Keith Jenkins (@MrKeithJenkins) November 19, 2022
After opening as a three-point favorite on Sunday, the line has dropped to Cincinnati -1 as backers pour in on the Green Wave side. There may not be a significant drop off from Bryant to Prater, as Prater is the highest rated offensive recruit in school history. However, he may not not be developed enough as a quarterback to handle a stout Green Wave defense.
We may find out on Saturday. For more, check out our game preview.
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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.