Running back Shannon Brooks suffered a non-contact lower leg injury and will miss the entire 2018 season, P.J. Fleck announced Tuesday.
“He suffered a lower leg injury in one of our last days of winter conditioning,” P.J. Fleck said Tuesday. “[It was a] non-contact injury. That’s unfortunate, obviously, that’s not the news everyone wants to hear,” Fleck said.
Head coach P.J. Fleck said Brooks will have surgery soon in preparation for a 2019 return. The senior running back will receive a medical redshirt to return next year. Minnesota will now rely on young running backs like Mohamed Ibrahim, Dominik London, Nolan Edmonds, and Jonathan Femi-Cole to cement themselves as a complementary to senior Rodney Smith. The team may also decide to use freshman Bryce Williams in this role. Fleck said they will rotate running backs this spring to find the additional running back.
“The pair and spare will kind of be by committee until we find out who those guys are,” Fleck said. “Because one door closes, that doesn’t mean that’s the only door. Now the other guys’ door has opened.”
Brooks played in six games last season and rushed 79 times for 369 yards and five touchdowns. He has missed the better part of three seasons with ankle injuries and concussions. He will serve as a coach during the 2018 season, a role P.J. Fleck believes he will benefit from.
“The greatest form of mastery is to be able to teach it,” Fleck said.