Casey Thompson shares thumb injury details, improvements made after healing

Nebraska transfer quarterback Casey Thompson explained what happened to him last season with Texas, and how he’s recovered from his injury. Thompson took over as starter with the Longhorns midway through last season and impressed, including throwing for five touchdowns and zero interceptions against Oklahoma in the Red River Showdown game.

Unfortunately, Thompson suffered a thumb injury during the loss and struggled to get back to his full form. In the offseason, after former Nebraska quarterback Adrian Martinez left via the transfer portal — Thompson stepped into the Cornhuskers open position. With his thumb fully healed after an off-season procedure, he detailed his struggles last year and how he’s “better than ever” now.

Casey Thompson on his thumb injury

“I basically had a ligament, I was, you know, injured — and I had a lot of ongoing chronic issues in my thumb that I didn’t know about,” explained Thompson. “And once we found out, we got it fixed. I basically went from October to April throwing the football, not knowing that I had some damage in there and we got it fixed.

“I would say now that I feel better than ever. My grip is 100 percent. I’m able to throw the ball like I want to with the velocity that I want to. I have great mechanics, you know, I have more zip on the ball and I’m able to throw it around the field. So I would say I probably was making it work just by compensating.

“From Week 6 against Oklahoma in the second quarter I threw a screen pass to Bijan Robinson on a left hash on third down. And it was incomplete and I basically probably tore and strained all the ligaments and muscles and everything in my hand.

“I didn’t know at that time what the severity of it was, but like I said, everything is fixed now. And I’m healthy and my thumb and my arm are stronger than its ever been. I’m really excited about how the ball is coming off my hands. And I think Coach Frost is right. I have more confidence and more grip so I’m able to just make more throws.”

Although many fans knew that the injury occurred during the game against Oklahoma, Thompson’s explanation sheds light on exactly how he remembers it happening and why he took so long to recover. With Thompson not understanding exactly what had happened to his thumb, he continued to play and fight through something that was correctable with a procedure.

Now, the Cornhuskers may be getting an even better version of Thompson that what he showed at Texas — as he settles into his new program with a renewed throwing arm.