Washington Huskies: Uncertainty Surrounds Azeem Victor’s Injury
By Paul Taylor
The Washington Huskies have suffered another significant blow, with star linebacker Azeem Victor likely out for the rest of the regular season.
When it rains, it pours. On Saturday, the Washington Huskies had their hopes of an unbeaten season dashed, as they were beaten 26-13 by USC.
Coming so soon after losing sack leader Joe Mathis for the remainder of the campaign, it was a bitter pill to swallow. Now, they will have to deal with the absence of another significant member of their defense.
Star linebacker Azeem Victor injured himself during the second quarter against the Trojans, while making a tackle. As a result, he had to be taken off the field on a medical cart.
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As you’d expect, there was a lot of concern about potentially losing the team’s leading tackler. After the game, Huskies head coach Chris Petersen admitted it never looks good when air casts and trainer’s carts are involved.
Understandably, Victor’s health was one of the main talking points at Petersen’s press conference on Monday. However, his status for the season still remains somewhat up in the air – at least officially.
Petersen said: “He had surgery (on Sunday), but it’s okay. It’s not going to be a real long-term thing – it’s a bone and those things will heal quickly.
“I don’t exactly know what the timeline is. However, it’s probably as good as it could be in terms of all those things.”
Given that update, it can certainly be agreed the Compton, California native’s injury is not as bad as initially feared. Having said that, will the Huskies get him back in time for a Bowl game?
Unfortunately, the answer from Petersen did little to clear things up or inspire confidence at this stage: “I don’t know anything about that beyond his having surgery.”
In closing, the Huskies head coach confirmed Victor suffered a leg fracture: “When it was all said and done it was actually more positive than we were first thinking.
“Going into surgery it can often be all other kinds of stuff. (However), this time it was pretty straightforward from what I understand.”
Now, it should be noted Petersen generally has no issue discussing an injury or confirming if it is indeed season-ending, but it still doesn’t sound good. At the very least, it’s safe to assume Victor will not be available for the final two games of the Huskies’ regular season.
Next: Huskies' playoff hopes still alive despite loss
Let’s go with the likelihood Victor is out for the remainder of the regular season. Factoring in Mathis’ absence, do the Huskies have enough talent left to still produce effectively on defense and win their next two games? Let us know in the comments section below.