It was announced on Tuesday that Riley Nelson was injured during the Florida State game and will opt for surgery that will put him out for the rest of the season. The announcement was made official just a day after Coach Mendenhall announced that he still planned to utilize the two quarterback system. Mendenhall also said that Riley first injured his shoulder during fall camp, which was kept quiet, and on Saturday the injury was worsened. Riley made the decision to have surgery in hopes to return to the team by spring practice.
Of course the other result of the injury is that Jake Heaps will now be the full starter of the team and will get all the reps in both practices and games. In response to the move, Heaps expressed his excitement for the opportunity to fully take control of the offense and hopefully show what he is capable of. He admits that there is still a lot of work to be done, but feels that good things are ahead for BYU Football.
It is quite ironic that one of the biggest controversies was pushed to a forced decision. There were many that felt that a decision should have been made during fall camp, however, Bronco continued to boldly say that no one had "emerged" as a starter and until someone had, the two qb system would remain in tact.
No one likes to see anyone get injured, especially someone as hard working and tough of a guy as Nelson. However, Riley's sacrifice may help BYU win more games by the end of the season. It was clear that Bronco was not close to making a decision and everyone knew splitting reps was affecting the effectiveness of both quarterbacks and receivers. Now that Bronco's hand was forced, I do believe we will begin to see much more effectiveness on offense.
It was also announced today that O'neill Chambers will be suspended for two weeks from the football team for "disciplinary reasons." The suspension comes from Coach Mendenhall himself and would not specify what caused the suspension. It is known that Chambers has had a mixed attitude in the locker room and has popped off on a few occasions in practice. Chambers will not be able to practice with the team or play in the games for two weeks and will solely focus on academics. He will also be moved from off campus housing to Wymount Terrace for the time being. Chambers has not been much of a play maker thus far in the season, besides returning both kickoffs and punts.
Sources say Chambers is unhappy with the suspension and is working things out in his head.