Report: Braxton Miller reinjures shoulder, season could be in doubt
Braxton’s Miller’s season with Ohio State could be in jeopardy after reinjuring his right shoulder during practice on Monday, according to the Columbus Dispatch.
A source told Cleveland.com that Miller left the field in significant pain.
CBS Sports' Jeremy Fowler said Miller was injured during a routine non-contact drill. He was throwing an out-route, felt something in his shoulder and was immediately taken off the field. Miller will have an MRI on Tuesday.
Ohio State has not confirmed the reports.
Miller, a Heisman Trophy candidate, originally injured his right throwing shoulder during the Orange Bowl loss to Clemson last season. He had surgery in February and missed all of spring football and has been held out of the early parts of fall camp.
In an odd twist of fate, Miller spoke to media following the Buckeyes morning practice and told fans not to worry about the fact that he hadn't participated much through fall camp.
"I'm doing fine," Miller told media. "It's just a progression in my shoulder, just a precaution. I don't want to overdo it before the first game and then I've got to sit out the first game because my muscle is too sore back in the back. It's part of the plan. We just talk about it every day and I do exercises to get the strength back up. I'll be good."
Miller noted he had muscle soreness, but nothing that was too worrisome. However, Ohio State had been resting Miller to give his shoulder time to adjust to the new workload. Even though he had thrown since being cleared in July, he was doing so every other day. He didn't throw much at all Monday morning, but was expected to get more action during the closed afternoon session.
"He is where he is right now not because the shoulder is injured,"offensive coordinator Tom Herman said, "but because of the fatigue of multiple practices day after day after day, 50, 60, 70 balls being thrown. The thing is going to get tired.
"The muscles aren't ready for that and so we've got to continue to build them up. Going out and throwing 30 routes for 20 minutes with the wideouts (in the summer) is a lot different than having a full 2-hour practice with your team. We just have to continue to build him up to that he can do that, muscle-wise."
If Miller is out for an extended amount of time — or even the season — Ohio State's hopes for a national title and even a Big Ten title take a serious hit. Redshirt freshman J.T. Barrett is listed second on the depth chart after being promoted ahead of sophomore Cardale Jones. However, neither has much experience. Barrett redshirted last season while Jones played in three games. He completed just one pass for three yards.
Miller suffering any sort of setback, especially one that could cost him the season, was probably Ohio State's biggest fear. Even though it had the entire offseason to get its green quarterbacks ready, nothing can replicate game action.
We'll update as soon as Ohio State confirms Miller's status.
For more Ohio State news, visit BuckeyeGrove.com.
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Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter! Follow @YahooDrSaturday
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