Fresno state QB Jake Haener ruled out for Mountain West opener at Boise State
.JPG "Fresno State quarterback Jake Haener passes during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Southern California Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)")
A week to week injury designation will not be this week for Fresno State quarterback Jake Haener and several other Bulldogs who sat out a rough loss at UConn.
Haener as well as safety Evan Williams, linebacker Ray Scott and right tackle Dontae Bull remain out and will not play in the Mountain West Conference opener at Boise State.
“There’s a couple more in there, too,” coach Jeff Tedford said. “They’re all week to week. None of them had to have major surgery, so they won’t be out for the whole season, but any time you have those types of things it’s going to take a few weeks to recover. It just depends how fast they recover from their injuries. We’ll get them back at some time. Hopefully, sooner than later.”
Wideout Josh Kelly and freshman defensive tackle Gavriel Lightfoot also didn’t play at UConn due to leg and ankle injuries, the Bulldogs going without six starters and a lot of game reps.
Bull had played 192 snaps in the Bulldogs’ first three games, third-most on the offense behind Haener and guard Mose Vavao. Kelly ranked second among the wideouts. Scott ranked second in his position group and Lightfoot made two starts and was second on the team among interior defensive linemen in snaps played.
Haener, who had his right ankle in a boot last week, was injured in the third quarter of the Bulldogs’ loss at USC. He could return for an Oct. 15 Homecoming game against San Jose State, when Fresno State will retire jersey No. 15 in honor of record-setting wideout Davante Adams. Or, more likely perhaps, the following week when the Bulldogs open a three-game stretch against struggling teams on the road at New Mexico.
This story was originally published October 3, 2022 at 2:16 PM.