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Another year, another season-ending injury for BYU’s starting quarterback.
After missing two games earlier in the season with a high ankle sprain on his left ankle, Tanner Mangum suffered a season-ending achilles injury on his right foot in Saturday’s loss to Fresno State.
Head Coach Kalani Sitake confirmed the news postgame:
Kalani tells us during postgame that it’s confirmed Tanner Mangum is done for the season with an Achilles injury suffered in the 2nd half.
— Greg Wrubell (@gregwrubell) November 5, 2017
Depending on the severity on the injury, Tanner’s playing career could be in jeopardy as well. BYU begins spring ball in just under 5 months, and the 2018 regular season begins in 10 months. Tanner still has a redshirt year remaining.
In the meantime, BYU will look to Beau Hoge or Joe Critchlow to finish out the final three games of this season. Assuming Hoge can stay healthy, he will likely be the starter the rest of the way.
With bowl eligibility out of the question, the last three games could be an audition of sorts for next year’s starting QB. If Hoge or Critchlow puts a spark into an anemic offense, they could set themselves up to be the favorite to be BYU’s starting QB in 2018.
In the meantime, best of luck to Tanner as he begins the road to recovery.