Western Kentucky RB Leon Allen out for season
A day after beating Louisiana Tech, Western Kentucky received some bad news related to one its best players.
Hilltoppers head coach Jeff Brohm announced Friday that star running back Leon Allen is out for the season after going down with a grisly-looking knee injury in Thursday night’s 41-38 win.
“This afternoon, we received confirmation that Leon Allen suffered a knee injury that will force him to miss the remainder of the 2015 season,” Brohm said in a statement. “He will have the full complement of resources and the total support of our medical team and coaching staff as he goes through the rehabilitation process to return from this injury.”
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Allen, a senior, was injured early in the third quarter as he tried to catch a pass out of the backfield. He took a hit that caused his leg to bend at an awkward angle. He was subsequently helped off the field and taken into the locker room on a cart and did not return. Prior to the injury, Allen rushed for 81 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries.
The loss is a significant one for the Hilltoppers. Allen, who also had 60 yards and a score in last week’s season-opening win over Vanderbilt, was third in Conference USA with 1,542 rushing yards in 2014. He also added 13 rushing touchdowns and had 51 catches for 476 yards and three more scores through the air.
Allen has not used his redshirt, so he could rehab and return to the Hilltoppers as a fifth-year senior in 2016.
In Allen’s absence, redshirt freshman D’Andre Ferby and fifth-year senior Anthony Davis, an Indiana transfer, will see the bulk of the carries. Against Louisiana Tech, Ferby gained just 39 yards on 14 carries, but scored on a 1-yard plunge late in the third quarter. Davis added 29 yards on two carries.
Now 2-0, WKU next plays Indiana on the road next Saturday.
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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
