Monday, December 3, 2001

[ COLLEGE FOOTBALL ]

ASSOCIATED PRESS Brigham Young running back Luke Staley broke his leg Saturday during the game-winning drive against Mississippi State.

BYU’s Staley out for Saturday
game against Hawaii

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By Erik Matuszewski
Bloomberg News

PROVO, Utah >> Brigham Young All-America running back Luke Staley broke a bone in his lower left leg during Saturday's 41-38 win at Mississippi State, a possible blow to the Cougars' hopes for an undefeated season.

Staley, who leads the nation with 28 touchdowns, will miss this week's regular-season finale against Hawaii (8-3) at Aloha Stadium. The injury will probably keep him out three to six weeks, so his availability for a bowl game is in doubt.

"I don't think there's any question that we will miss having Luke on Saturday," said BYU coach Gary Crowton, whose team is 12-0. "However, we have players on this team who can, and will, step up."

Staley, one of three finalists for the Doak Walker Award as college football's top running back, set a school record with 1,582 rushing yards this season while averaging 8.1 yards a carry. He rushed for 149 yards on 28 carries against Mississippi State before getting injured on BYU's game-winning drive in the final minute.

Cougars head trainer George Curtis said it's too early to determine if Staley would be able to return for the team's scheduled appearance in the Dec. 31 Liberty Bowl against Louisville.

BYU is one of two undefeated Division I-A teams, along with top-ranked Miami (11-0), but the Cougars were only 12th in the last Bowl Championship Series rankings because of their weak strength of schedule rating.