KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -Tennessee tailback Montario Hardesty has a stress fracture in his leg and probably won’t play against Wyoming on Saturday.
Hardesty has been slowed by an ankle injury at several times in his career, but coach Phillip Fulmer said Wednesday at practice he wasn’t sure if the two injuries were related.
Fulmer said Hardesty’s leg had been bothering him for several weeks.
The 6-foot, 210-pound New Bern, N.C., native is the team’s second best rusher with 211 yards on the ground this season for an average 23.4 per game. He leads the team with five touchdowns.
Also, more news in a week loaded with it at Tennessee, cornerback Brent Vinson was suspended for last week’s game against South Carolina because he was cited by police for possession of marijuana and a violation of the state’s open container law in the week leading up to the game.
According to a Knoxville police report, Vinson was issued five citations after being pulled over for speeding around 10 p.m. Oct. 29.
of alcohol in his vehicle.
He was issued citations for speeding, driving without a license and driving without insurance.
The next day, Fulmer announced Vinson would serve a suspension at South Carolina. The Vols lost 27-6 and on Monday announced Fulmer would not be back next season.
Fulmer says Vinson, who served an academic-related suspension in the Vols’ season opener at UCLA, will be available Saturday when Tennessee faces Wyoming for homecoming.
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SEARCHING: Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville’s No. 1 criteria in hiring his next offensive coordinator might not be a fancy system but his ability to land the players to run it.
“What I’m looking for is somebody that fits into what we’d like to do, but also gives us a future in terms of being able to recruit,” Tuberville said. “That’s 99 percent of it. You’ve got to be able to get players to buy into what you’re doing, on defense and offense. Then you have to have a good salesman. It starts with the head coach and then it goes to the offensive and defensive coordinators.”
He said he has had a big stack of resumes pile up on his desk since firing Tony Franklin but won’t make any moves until after the season. It’s a frequent topic for the Tigers’ offensive recruits.
iple. They always want to know who’s going to be in charge of what they’re doing.”
At least one Auburn player dismissed speculation that Tuberville’s own job security could be shaky after four consecutive losses.
“His job’s not in jeopardy,” tailback Brad Lester said. “People say that every time a coach has a bad year. Coach Tubs does a good job and he’s not going anywhere.
“People talk and we hear rumors and stuff like that about jobs and stuff like that. It’s just, people like to talk.”
How worried is Tuberville? “I’m not worried at all,” he said.
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DEFENDING LEE: LSU coach Les Miles is trying to walk that fine line of defending his embattled quarterback without criticizing the passionate fans who have started to boo Jarrett Lee’s mistakes.
“I think, by and large, that the group of people that support this team are unbelievably loyal,” Miles said. “I certainly understand frustration. We all do. Finishing second is not any fun, and we are all pulling in the same direction. We certainly want to win and play our best.”
Lee was booed after throwing his latest interception for a touchdown during LSU’s 35-10 victory over Tulane last Saturday. The play had no bearing on the outcome of the game, but it was the fifth time this season a linebacker had picked off one of Lee’s passes and returned it for a score.
ier and the trend was clearly upsetting to LSU fans who understand Lee will have to play a lot better if the No. 15 Tigers are to stand any chance of upsetting top-ranked Alabama and ruining former LSU coach Nick Saban’s return to Baton Rouge this weekend.
“Jarrett Lee is a lot like any redshirt freshman that’s playing in his first season,” Miles said. “The things that he got away with in high school are not necessarily just easy for him.
“I like his approach. He works hard. He really had a good week of practice last week, and if he does that again this week, I think this team and the coaches will expect as he will a very strong game.”
Lee claimed he didn’t notice the boos, but added he wouldn’t be fazed by it anyway.
“Fans, if something happens that they don’t like, that’s going to happen,” said Lee, who’s thrown for 12 TDs and 10 interceptions. “So it’s part of the process and you’ve just got to move on and improve.”
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