Injury, Unavailability Report: Tashawn Manning Not Starting Against Youngstown State
Entering week three of the 2022 season, some injuries are starting to pile up for Kentucky. The Wildcats will be down multiple starters this afternoon against Youngstown State
Not Starting
Starting right guard Tashawn Manning is not starting today's game against Youngstown State. Fifth-year senior Quintin Wilson is starting in his place.
Manning transferred into Lexington from Auburn and started the first two games of the season for the Wildcats, both at right guard. Kentucky's offensive line has had issues to open the season, though it's been the left and right tackle spots that have taken a bulk of the blame, not Manning.
Wilson will make his second start of his career against the Penguins. His first came in Kentucky's Citrus Bowl victory over Iowa to cap off the 2021 season.
Out
Free safety Jalen Geiger remains out after suffering a lower leg injury last weekend against Florida due to an illegal blindside block. Mark Stoops said the injury "doesn't look good" following the game, and reiterated the same thing on Monday, saying Gieger was undergoing further evaluations.
Redshirt Freshman Jordan Lovett will make his first career start in place of Geiger today. He played two and a half quarters against the Gators following the injury to his teammate, recording seven tackles along the way.
Running back JuTahn McClain will once again not play after being listed "week-to-week" by Stoops for the second week in a row. He was injured in the season-opener against Miami (OH) but did not play against Florida. He joins Ramon Jefferson as tailbacks sitting out with injuries, as Jefferson is expected to miss the rest of the season due to a torn ACL.
Kavosiey Smoke remains the starting running back, while La'Vell Wright is expected to serve as the primary backup for the second week in
Unavailable to Play
Chris Rodriguez will miss game three of what has been announced as a four-game absence. It was announced on Monday that the star running back will make his return on Oct. 1, when the Wildcats travel to Oxford to take on Ole Miss.
A new report was released on Saturday morning by Jon Hale of the Lexington Herald-Leader, potentially shedding some light on what has been keeping Rodriguez out of action.
documents revealed by the Hale showed where an investigation was launched by the University of Kentucky in February, looking into players on the Kentucky football team for allegedly filing inaccurate time cards while working under UK HealthCare.
The report notes that two players were investigated, though the names of the players are redacted. Jordan Wright missed the season-opener against Miami (OH), while Rodriguez will end up missing a total of four games.
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