Oh boy, here comes the injury plague again. The California Bears football team has already been struck with a couple of serious injuries.
During training camp, according to Cal Athletics, projected starting middle linebacker Nathan Broussard tore his ACL, which will end his season for the second straight year.
Quinton Tartabull, a three-star true freshman safety from Mission Hills, California, also tore his ACL. Wait, there’s one more.
Jeffrey Coprich, a rotational but productive running back, fractured his foot, which will keep him off the field for “four to eight weeks,” according to head coach Sonny Dykes.
California Bears Injury Plague Starts Early
This is already three big losses for the 1-11 Golden Bears. Let’s break down why.
If you were a Bears fan a couple of years ago, you would’ve been one of the thousands of people that claimed Broussard will be the next Matt Russi, a legendary linebacker alumnus of California. Broussard played in 11 games as a redshirt freshman in 2012, making four starts and being very productive, recording 18 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, and three sacks. Well, an ACL tear in camp ended his sophomore season, and now it has ended his season once again.
Quinton Tartabull was one of the highly recruited players Cal brought in. With an unpredictable secondary (even Sonny Dykes admitted that they were the weak spot of the defense), Tartabull would’ve played a lot this season. He is versatile and fantastic in coverage; go watch his highlight tape. But like Broussard, he must stand on the sidelines for a year before he can make a name for himself.
And finally there is Coprich. Coprich, a 5-foot-8, 175-pound sophomore, ran for 156 yards on 40 carries in 2013. But don’t let his stats confuse you. To be as productive as that during his freshman season in the Pac-12 is impressive. With Brandon Bigelow gone, Khalfani Muhammad and Coprich were thought to be the replacements. He may still be ready by week three, but while he is gone, Tre Watson, a true freshman, will be given his share of carries.
Cal’s season opens up on the road at Northwestern on August 30th. The Golden Bears went 1-11 in 2013, and will be looking to improve this year, despite these setbacks.
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