Nebraska starting QB Casey Thompson OUT for Minnesota game
LINCOLN – Casey Thompson has been a warrior for the Huskers all season. But the Nebraska starting quarterback will miss the battle today.
Thompson is OUT for the Huskers' game against Minnesota. Chubba Purdy is in line to start, and Logan Smothers will be in the mix for snaps as well.
Thompson, who has started all eight games for the Huskers this season, suffered a nerve injury to his throwing arm against Illinois midway through the second quarter last week and missed the rest of the game.
One source close told Inside Nebraska that Thompson underwent final tests on Friday night to help determine the strength and stability of his arm and gauge whether or not the nerve issue with his arm had recovered well enough to play on Saturday. Thompson had battled all week to recover and attempt to play, including practicing in a limited capacity on Wednesday. He told Huskers interim coach Mickey Joseph on Wednesday that he would be ready to play.
The Huskers staff, however, made the final determination on Friday night that Thompson's nerve injury has not healed enough and do not want to put him at risk of further injury – though Thompson fought to play and hoped to convince the staff that he could suit up.
"Casey's a competitor. The kid wants to play," Joseph said.
Thompson has displayed impressive physical and mental toughness this season, fighting through several injuries and getting off the ground after taking multiple hit hards in just about every game. Due in large part to the guts he has shown all year, it appeared that Thompson might be able to bounce back and give it a go.
But Joseph and the Huskers did not feel comfortable putting Thompson on the field, so he will miss his first full game after having played in 489 out of a total of 556 snaps for the Husker offense. Nebraska will turn to Purdy (55 snaps) and Smothers (six plays) to lead the offense against a Minnesota defense that is ranked fourth in the country in points allowed per game (14.4) and seventh in total yards allowed per game (274.4).