A number of college football’s biggest stars suffered devastating, season-ending injuries in 2023. They all battled through long recoveries this offseason. Some even acclimated to new coaches and transfer destinations while rehabilitating. Now, the slings and braces are off, with some of the most-anticipated returns to the field ahead of Week 1.
Notre Dame at Texas A&M headlines a stacked Week 1 slate. The game features two AP top 25 teams and pits Irish quarterback Riley Leonard against his mentor at Duke, new Aggies head coach Mike Elko. Leonard is returning from two ankle surgeries that cost him the majority of his first offseason in South Bend. On the other sideline, Aggies quarterback Conner Weigman makes his own return from injury after missing the last half of the 2023 season with a broken foot.
The NCAA reported that 8.9% of college football players get seriously injured each year. Concussions (7.5%), ligament tears (6.9%) and hamstring tears (4.7%) accounted for the largest proportions of specific injuries. Preseason injuries are more common than regular and postseason injuries, and 41.2% of injuries resulted in time loss.
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Here are key college football players coming off devastating injuries:
Jalon Daniels, QB, Kansas
Kansas head coach Lance Leipold confirmed Tuesday that Daniels is back to full health and will start the Jayhawks’ season-opener against Lindenwood on Thursday. The electric but oft-injured redshirt junior missed half of his breakout 2022 season with a shoulder injury and was limited to just three games in 2023 with a hurt back. He’s thrown for 2,729 yards and 23 touchdowns with five interceptions in 12 games the last two seasons.
“He will start the opener,” Leipold said. “I’ve seen a lot of good things from Jalon Daniels in the last 10 days, and he hasn’t missed anything. He’s played well. He’s confident. He’s excited. His enthusiasm is contagious. We all know that it’s important for him to stay healthy, but it’s good to see.”
Trey Lathan, LB, West Virginia
Lathan started the first five games at mike linebacker before a broken tibia and fibula ended his season. He finished his redshirt freshman season with 27 tackles, 1.0 tackles for loss and two pass breakups. He is one of 11 Big 12 players on the Comeback Player of the Year watch list and is expected to play against North Carolina in Week 1.
Fellow linebacker Josiah Trotter is also expected to return to the field on Aug. 31 after missing all of 2023 due to a lower-leg injury he suffered during spring practice. Trotter is the son of Jeremiah Trotter Sr, a former four-time Pro Bowl linebacker with the Philadelphia Eagles. His brother Jeremiah Trotter Jr. starred at Clemson.
Smith Vilbert, EDGE, Penn State
Vilbert arrived at Penn State way back in 2019. The former three-star recruit redshirted his freshman season and played sparingly during his second season before appearing in 12 games in 2021 (one start) and recording 12 tackles, 4.0 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks. Following his breakout year, Vilbert has only appeared in one game over the past two seasons due to undisclosed injuries. He’s made the long journey back to full health this offseason and is expected to enter his sixth season of college ball in the two-deep at defensive end.
Bru McCoy, WR, Tennessee
McCoy was off to the best start of his collegiate career last season when he fractured his ankle against South Carolina on Sept. 30 and had to undergo four surges and spend 10 days in the hospital to fix it. It’s been a long road to recovery for the former five-star recruit this offseason, but his comeback is nearly complete. Vols quarterback Nico Iamaleava spoke about his excitement about playing with one of his high school idols after Thursday’s practice.
“When I was younger, I thought Bru was the greatest high school player of all time,” Iamaleava said. “It’s definitely exciting to see him get back into his own. I feel like that No. 5 on him takes him back to his old high school days. Hopefully, we get to show y’all me and Bru’s connection.”
Andrel Anthony, WR, Oklahoma
Anthony led Oklahoma with 429 yards and a touchdown on 27 receptions through six games last season before suffering a torn ACL in the Red River Rivalry against Texas. Head coach Brent Venables said this week that Anthony is back at full speed and a candidate to play against Temple in Week 1: “He’s doing good. He won’t be required to wear (the brace). We’re obviously trying to be careful with him. He doesn’t have any limits.'”
Riley Leonard, QB, Notre Dame
Leonard’s 2023 season at Duke got off to a hot start. The Blue Devils started 4-0 before suffering a loss to Notre Dame on the final drive, during which he injured his right ankle. The injury kept him out for a month, and he wasn’t the same player when he returned. He underwent tightrope ankle surgery when he first transferred to Notre Dame in January and managed to get back on the field by the start of spring practice. However, a second ankle surgery kept him out most of spring ball. He’s taken a majority of first-team reps since the start of fall camp and will be full-go when Notre Dame takes the field against Texas A&M and his former Duke head coach Mike Elko in Week 1.
“I’m excited to go live and get hit,” Leonard said at fall camp. “Being able to be myself again is the best feeling in the world. My right ankle is stronger than it’s ever been. It’s more mobile than my left because I’ve worked it so much.”
Conner Weigman, QB, Texas A&M
Weigman started the first four games for Texas A&M last season and completed 68.9% of his passes for 979 yards and eight touchdowns with two interceptions before a broken left foot ended his season. His five touchdown passes in the season-opener marked the most in regulation by a Texas A&M quarterback since Johnny Manziel in 2013. Head coach Mike Elko said ahead of fall camp that Weigman is back to full strength after the former five-star was a limited participant in spring ball.
“I’m 100% ready to go,” Weigman said this week. “It’s been a long time coming, and I can’t wait to be out there Aug. 31.”
Lathan Ransom, SAF, Ohio State
Ransom missed the last five games of the 2023 season after a Lisfranc tear in his left foot and finished the year with 34 tackles and one interception in nine games. He’s back to full health and will start the 2024 season as one-half of arguably the best safety duo in the nation with transfer Caleb Downs.
“Lathan is an elite player,” Downs said recently. “He’s a player that sets the tone every day. He is a player who comes to practice every day and plays hard in everything. He battles through everything that comes his way. I don’t know why they’re looking at me and not him because he’s an elite player.”