USC Trojans Football: Utes All-Pac-12 QB Cam Rising To Miss Remainder Of Season After Utah Win

Utah Utes quarterback Cameron Rising dominated the Trojan defense in both of the Utes' wins against USC last season. His combined stats from the rivals' two meetings: 52-for-78 passing for 725 yards and five touchdowns, adding 78 yards and three touchdowns on the ground.

Unfortunately, Rising tore ligaments in his knee in the Rose Bowl against Penn State. While there was speculation that Rising could be ready to return as soon as the Utes' season opener against Florida, Utah's head coach confirmed after their win over USC that Rising would not play this season.

Tight end Brant Kuithe was also ruled out for the season by Greg Beacham of the Associated Press.

"That hopefulness each week is no longer," Whittingham said. "It's a medical decision to just shut them down. Don't know what the future holds exactly for each of them, but when they're ready to talk about that, they'll be the ones to do that."

(Via Greg Beacham, the Associated Press)

Both Rising and Kuithe possess NFL-caliber traits and would both likely be drafted in the 2024 NFL Draft. The question would become, how far do they fall after missing the entirety of the 2023 season? And do they decide to return to Utah for one more season to improve their draft stock?

It's a question that, as Whittingham suggested, will be answered by each athlete in time.

Utah has managed without Rising and Kuithe. The Utes are ranked No. 13 with a loss to No. 11 Oregon State and fresh off of a nail-biting 34-32 win over USC in which quarterback Bryson Barnes played the best game of his career with 235 passing yards and three passing touchdowns, adding a score on the ground.

Utah will play Washington and Oregon this season, meaning a trip to the Pac-12 is entirely in their hands.

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