Cam Rising injury update: Kyle Whittingham confirms Utah quarterback is fully healthy entering 2024

Cam Rising ended the 2022 season in disappointing fashion, suffering a major knee injury in the Rose Bowl against Penn State. While rumblings occurred all of last season regarding his status, a medical redshirt was eventually taken. Utah turned to Bryson Barnes and Nate Johnson for the 2023 season while Rising continued to heal.

Now, as the Utes transition from the Pac-12 to the Big 12, Rising is expected to be back under center. Head coach Kyle Whittingham confirmed his quarterback is back to 100% health on Tuesday at Big 12 Media Days. Just weeks away from the season opener against Southern Utah, it’s fantastic news for Utah fans to hear.

“At this point in time, he’s 100%,” Whittingham said. “Hopefully, there’s no, you know, something that rears its ugly head, no setbacks. But he had a terrific spring. (He) was not hit, we didn’t hit him at all in spring but he did every drill, every day with no issues, and so we’re expecting him on the opening day — him and Brant Kuithe our tight end for that matter, who missed all of last year as well — to be ready to go.”

Rising is one of the oldest players in college football, originally being a member of the 2018 recruiting class. He transferred to Utah from Texas ahead of the 2020 season but did not become the full-time starter until the year after. Since then, Rising has been one of the more consistent quarterbacks in college football.

A total of 27 games have been played by Rising, attempting over 700 passes. His yardage total surpassed 3,000 in 2022, totaling 55,72 yards throughout his career. Rising also has a nice touchdown to interception ratio, throwing for 46 scores and turning the ball over just 14 times.

Whittingham also mentioned Kuithe in his quote, somebody who has not recorded a stat since Sept. 9, 2022, when Utah was facing off against Arizona State. Another long-time player in the college game, Kuithe was also a recruit back in 2018.

Kuithe should prove to be a valuable weapon for the Utes and one Rising can rely on. There has been some turnover since they last took competitive snaps but there is still a connection between the two.

Getting them back to full health should be huge for the program as they push for a Big 12 Championship and potentially even make a run in the College Football Playoff.