CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) — No. 6 Miami lost running back Marty Brown and wide receiver Joshua Moore for the rest of the season because of injuries, coach Mario Cristobal said Monday, adding that several other key players also got hurt in last weekend’s win over Wake Forest.
Star wide receiver Malachi Toney, running back Mark Fletcher Jr. and defensive linemen Ahmad Moten all were dealing with injuries at various points of the Hurricanes’ 33-20 road victory.
Fletcher left the game in the fourth quarter, Toney appeared to be limited in the second half and Moten briefly left with what appeared to be a shoulder issue before returning.
Another hit came to the linebacker group, with Ezekiel Marcelin Jr. — who had been rising on the depth chart — expected to miss several weeks with a lower-body issue. Marcelin was part of four tackles and had a quarterback hurry in Friday’s win.
Brown was hurt in the second quarter. Moore’s issue wasn’t known about until after the game.
“I’m heartbroken for these guys,” Cristobal said. “These are legitimate, awesome human beings, team leaders, guys that have just busted their butts to be in great position to help us win. … Football. Very unforgiving at times.”
Miami (3-0) plays host to Central Michigan on Saturday, before resuming Atlantic Coast Conference play at Clemson on Oct. 3.
Brown appeared to suffer a serious knee injury while being tackled at the end of a 32-yard run that set up a Miami touchdown. Moore — who caught a touchdown pass to open the scoring — played into the fourth quarter but will be out with an upper-body injury, Cristobal said.
Brown was Miami’s second-leading rusher behind Fletcher last season when the Hurricanes went to the College Football Playoff title game and had 97 yards on 13 carries this season. Moore had 107 yards on seven catches and two touchdowns in Miami’s first three games.
With Brown out, Miami could have Jordan Lyle return to the running back rotation for the first time this season. Lyle carried the ball 35 times last season and has not played this season while dealing with legal issues after being charged with aggressively fleeing and eluding a law enforcement officer and reckless driving over the summer. The more serious of those charges — the fleeing and eluding, which is a felony — has since been dropped.
“Jordan has made a poor decision,” Cristobal said. “He has done and is doing the things necessary to put himself in a good place with his teammates and our program, and he is a trusted football player and person.”
Cristobal also indicated that he expected Toney, Fletcher and Moten will be fine, though he said he was awaiting more medical reports from the team’s staff in the coming days.
“Some guys got banged up and are in and out,” Cristobal said. “Certainly not what we wanted.”
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