On the Dan Sileo Show this morning, Skip Holtz told Sileo that leading WR Sterling Griffin (broken ankle) and CB Ricardo Dixon (Torn ACL) will miss the remainder of the season after their injuries suffered against Cincinnati on Saturday.
After missing all of last year to a dislocated ankle, Griffin came back stronger than ever and emerged as B.J. Daniels' favorite target. For the season, Griffin lead the team in receptions and receiving yards, grabbing 40 balls for 493 yards, which doubled the nearest receiver in either category. If Sterling was able to stay healthy, he would have easily shattered the USF record for receptions and receiving yards, and was on pace to become USF's first 1000-yard receiver.
While it will be hard for USF to replace Griffin's production with just one player, freshman Deonte Welch and Andre Davis both looked excellent on the field Saturday. While Welch started opposite of Griffin and had a team high 130 yards receiving on 5 catches, it was the local Tampa native in Davis who stepped in for Sterling. The Jefferson High product had 4 catches for 60 yards, including an acrobatic touchdown reception to give USF the lead with 1:27 left in the game.
While Dixon wasn't starting for the Bulls, he earned a spot in the rotation after battling a back injury for most of the season. Dixon's injury leaves the Bulls extremely thin at cornerback with almost every other corner battling injuries themselves. Backup cornerbacks Ernie Tabuteau (back) and JaQuez Jenkins (hamstring) have each missed significant time this year, and starting corner Quenton Washington has been bothered by a knee injury all year. If injuries continued to pile up, Skip might be forced to use walk-on Brandon Salinas or move a safety like Spencer Boyd and Tyson Butler to corner for added depth.
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