Florida cornerback Vernon Hargreaves, arguably the Gators' most talented defender, emerged from a practice brawl Thursday night with an injury. Fortunately for the Gators, however, it appears the injury isn't serious.
This from the official UF football Twitter feed: "An MRI revealed that Vernon Hargreaves suffered a bone bruise and he is listed as day to day."
According to gatorbait.net, Hargreaves emerged from a scuffle involving 25-30 players made up of wide receivers and defensive backs "writhing in pain," and was carted off the field with his left leg wrapped in ice. Tweeting from reporters who were apparently on hand to see the incident was far more ominous about how the injury looked, noting that Hargreaves, perhaps the SEC's most talented man-to-man cornerback, was checked on by multiple teammates and appeared dejected as he was carted off the field.
As it turned out, Gator fans got a sigh of relief with Muschamp's update.
Although just a true sophomore, Hargreaves is arguably Florida's best defensive player. He led the team in interceptions (three) and pass breakups (11) as a true freshman last year, and has been named a preseason All-SEC choice.
Last year, Florida withstood season-ending injuries to its starting quarterback, Jeff Driskel, standout defensive lineman Dominique Easley, tackle Chaz Green, and other key performers as a season of high expectations shipwrecked with seven consecutive losses and a seat on the couch for bowl season.
That Hargreaves merely has a bone bruise is the sort of positive injury news that is long overdue in Gainesville, Fla.
Follow Chase Goodbread on Twitter *@ChaseGoodbread.*