Mickey Joseph reveals season-ending injury for Ajay Allen following surgery

The news keeps getting worse for Nebraska football, one week removed from the firing of coach Scott Frost and following a blowout loss to No. 6 Oklahoma in the first game under interim coach Mickey Joseph. On Tuesday, Joseph revealed that an injury Ajay Allen suffered required surgery and will end his season.

The nature of the injury was undisclosed.

“Yeah he had surgery yesterday,” Joseph said on Tuesday. “He’s back home, his mother’s in town. He’s doing fine. He came out of surgery well. He’s going to miss the rest of the season and it’s going to hurt us, but Gabe (Ervin Jr.)‘s a capable back of getting it done.”

Allen was the team’s second-leading rusher, having racked up 190 yards and two touchdowns on 33 carries so far this season. His 5.8 yards per carry average was the highest on the team for players with at least 10 carries.

The Huskers will lean more heavily on starter Anthony Grant, who has run for 464 yards and five touchdowns on 82 carries, as well as Ervin.

Ervin has rushed nine times for 61 yards and has not yet scored.

Nebraska run game must adjust without Ajay Allen

Injury has certainly forced Nebraska’s hand at running back a bit now with Allen sidelined, limiting the options Joseph has to spread touches in the backfield. The Cornhuskers had been decent running the football so far this season, despite playing from behind much of the year.

Through four games, Nebraska had averaged 193.5 yards per game on the ground, good for 49th nationally.

The schedule, however, does present at least a little leeway in terms of adjustment. Though unbeaten Indiana looms at home this weekend, the Hoosiers shouldn’t be quite the same challenge as the sixth-ranked Sooners were last weekend.

Then Nebraska travels to Rutgers the following week. The Scarlett Knights are also unbeaten still but haven’t been particularly good so far in 2022, also playing against fairly average FBS competition to date.