Earlier today, Head Coach Matt Rhule spoke to the media. One of the first things he mentioned is that Nebraska has suffered two more season-ending injuries to Blye Hill and Gage Stenger. This news comes just a few days after news of tight end Mac Markway suffering his third major knee injury in four years. Coach Rhule had this to say at his latest press conference about Hill and Stenger. “Both got injured. Blye had that patella once before and unfortunately, just re-injured the patella in a non-contact play a couple days ago. He was doing really well. He was playing really well. Our heart breaks for him. And Gage Stenger, just the heartbeat, the epitome of what it means to be a Husker, a leader on the team. Just a grinder and a guy who was going to play a lot of football, especially on the special teams for us. He also hurt his knee, as well.”
Both Hill and Stenger were both looking to see significant playing time this year, with Hill looking to battle for the 3rd starting spot at corner. Stenger was looking to be a key rotational player at linebacker and an impact player on the special teams. While neither were set to be a pivotal starter, Nebraska does take some blows when it comes to depth, and these injuries will make practices even more important for guys further down the depth chart, especially with kickoff against Cincinnati in a few weeks.