The list of season-ending injuries to some of college football's top players already has begun an alarming climb, but Arizona star linebacker Scooby Wright III has escaped joining the club.
Wildcats coach Rich Rodriguez told reporters Monday that Wright will miss 3-4 weeks with a knee injury, sparing one of the game's elite defenders for an October return. Under the timetable Rodriguez provided, Wright will miss games against Nevada, Northern Arizona and UCLA, at a minimum. If Wright is out for 4 weeks, he'll sit the Wildcats' Oct. 3 game at Stanford, as well. Previous reports suggested a more encouraging outlook for Wright's return, but missing no more than two Pac-12 games shouldn't have too much of an adverse effect on Arizona's hopes to repeat as Pac-12 South champions.
College Football 24/7 experts voted Wright (6-foot-1, 246 pounds) the No. 6 player in the college game, and NFL Media analyst Lance Zierlein regards Wright as the No. 3 linebacker in the nation, citing "elite instincts and quickness."
Wright's sophomore production in 2014 was other-worldly, amassing 163 tackles, 29 for losses, with 14 sacks and six forced fumbles. Those numbers earned him the Nagurski, Lombardi and Bednarik Awards.
As a junior, Wright could apply for entry into the 2016 NFL Draft if he chooses to forego his final year of NCAA eligibility.
*Follow Chase Goodbread on Twitter **@ChaseGoodbread*.
