Starting tight end Levine Toilolo will miss the remainder of the season after tearing his ACL on the second play from scrimmage in Stanford’s 52-17 win over Sacramento State.
“It sucks,” quarterback Andrew Luck said on the loss of the redshirt freshman. “My heart goes out to him. He is such a good kid.”
Head coach Jim Harbaugh made the announcement today at his weekly press conference that the 6-8 tight end did indeed tear his ACL and will require surgery at some point soon, although it had not been scheduled as of this afternoon.
One of the reasons Toilolo redshirted last year was because he had a leg injury then as well so as Harbaugh pointed out, this is really two years in a row he will miss because of injuries. Harbaugh said, “It is really unfortunate. He had prepared himself so well over the last 12 months that he was here.”
Toilolo surprised some by climbing up the depth chart to earn the starting tight end position during training camp. On the second play of the game, Luck found Toilolo behind the linebackers on the left side for a 27-yard catch and run. Unfortunately on the tackle he took a helmet right on his knee.
“It just sickens me for the youngster,” Harbaugh said. “His attitude right now is ‘that is football, I’ll be back.’ I wanted to reach over and give him a big hug when he said that. I know how tough it is.”
“Injuries happen in football, it is part of playing the game,” Luck said. “We have a great support system for him here. He has a great family.”
Harbaugh would not name a starter for the UCLA game but the tight end position is a deep one for the Cardinal. While Konrad Reuland or Coby Fleener is likely to start, Zach Ertz and Ryan Hewitt will see plenty of reps as well.
OTHER INJURIES:
Other than Toilolo, Harbaugh remained tight lipped about the injury status of his other key players. Chris Owusu, Shayne Skov and Jeremy Stewart continue to “work through things physically” and are considered “day-to-day.” Harbaugh would not expand past that.
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