Louisville won't know if star wide receiver DeVante Parker will play Thursday night against Rutgers until Thursday morning.
Parker (6-feet-3, 209 pounds), a junior, suffered an injured right shoulder in this past Saturday's easy victory over Temple. In his weekly Monday news conference, Cardinals coach Charlie Strong said Parker is "day-to-day."
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"Our training-room staff is giving him all the treatment he needs to get him ready out there to go play," Strong said.
Parker leads Louisville in receptions (21), receiving yards (375) and touchdowns (six). Louisville has six players with double-digit catches, but Parker is the only one with at least 20.
Strong called the injury a sprain after Saturday's game. Depending on the type of sprain, Parker either could play Thursday or miss up to three games.
"We have plenty of receivers to put in DeVante's place in the offense, but we don't have another big-play guy like him," Strong said.
Last season, Parker was a first-team All-Big East selection who had 10 TDs and averaged 18.7 yards per catch. But on a receiver-rich team, he had "only" 40 receptions. Parker has excellent size, and though he doesn't have elite speed, he is quick and can get off press coverage. He needs to learn to use his size better and become a more accomplished route-runner.
Mike Huguenin can be reached at mike.huguenin@nfl.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @MikeHuguenin.
