Injuries to key players are causing coaches at Nebraska, Iowa State and Minnesota to alter preparations for this weekend’s football games.
Nebraska coach Scott Frost says quarterback Adrian Martinez is day-to-day with a right knee injury and that it might not be known until game time whether he’ll be able to play against Troy on Saturday. Frost says video of the play raised suspicions that a Colorado defender intentionally hurt the knee after Martinez went down. Video was sent to the Big Ten and Pac-12 offices for review.
Iowa State quarterback Kyle Kempt is considered “day-to-day” with a knee injury and it is unknown whether he will play Saturday against No. 5 Oklahoma. Coach Matt Campbell says Kempt injured the MCL in his left knee in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s 13-3 loss to Iowa. He says the injury is not considered a long-term issue and the Cyclones dodged a “big bullet.”
Minnesota running back Rodney Smith will miss the remainder of the season because of an injury to his left knee. Smith was hurt on the third play of the game against Fresno State at the end of an 11-yard gain on a screen pass. Gophers coach P.J. Fleck says the team will request a medical redshirt and a sixth year of eligibility for 2019 for Smith. He is seventh in program history with 2,959 career rushing yards.
