Chez Mellusi injury update: Wisconsin running back expected to miss rest of season with fractured fibula, report says

As Chez Mellusi was placed on the back of a cart after going down with what appeared to be a leg injury in Wisconsin’s 38-17 win against Purdue on Friday night, the entire Badgers’ sideline ran over to him before the cart drove away.

If the presence of the cart or the gruesome replays weren’t enough of an indication, this show of support was — whatever had just happened to Mellusi was quite serious.

The Wisconsin running back exited the Badgers’ win with about seven minutes remaining. Before he was taken off the field, an air cast was applied to his injured left leg.

Prior to the injury, Mellusi ran for 39 yards on 11 carries against the Boilermakers. This season, the graduate student, who is in his third season with the program after transferring from Clemson, has 310 yards and four touchdowns while averaging six yards per carry.

Chez Mellusi leg injury update

With 6:37 remaining in the game and Wisconsin holding on to a 30-17 lead, Mellusi took a handoff on 2^nd-and-10 and was brought down for a one-yard loss near midfield by Purdue outside linebacker Kydran Jenkins.

In the process of tackling Mellusi, Jenkins came down on the left leg of the Badgers’ running back as he brought him to the turf, pinning the leg down and having it turn at an awkward and painful-looking angle.

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Within seconds of the play ending, officials blew their whistles and Wisconsin medical staff sprinted on the field to tend to Mellusi, who was holding his lower left leg near his ankle while writhing in pain.

Mellusi was taken to a hospital and was expected to fly back with the team to Madison, Wisconsin, on Friday night.

Update: According to a report from ESPN's Adam Rittenberg, Mellusi is expected to miss the remainder of the season with a fractured fibula.

What Luke Fickell said about Chez Mellusi injury

After the game, Badgers coach Luke Fickell said he didn’t know exactly what the injury was, but that “I don’t know that it looks good.” There has been no further update on the extent or severity of Mellusi’s injury.

“They’re hurting in there,” Fickell said of Mellusi and his team. “If we lose him for a while, it will be tough. He’s not just a great football player for us, he’s not just a great tailback. He’s been a heart and soul of what we do, because of what he’s gone through, all of the ups and downs, and the injuries. To have the attitude that he has, he’s a big part. If he can’t go for a while, he’ll still be a really big part of what we do.”

Chez Mellusi injury history

Friday’s injury isn’t the first of Mellusi’s Wisconsin career.

In 2021, Mellusi tore the ACL in his left knee in the third quarter of a 52-3 victory against Rutgers, forcing him to miss the remaining four games that season.

At the time of the injury, Mellusi was Wisconsin’s leading rusher, with 815 yards, five TDs and five 100-yard games. Braelon Allen, a 17-year-old freshman at the time, stepped into Mellusi’s role as the Badgers’ No. 1 running back and ran for 607 yards and six touchdowns in the final four games. He has been Wisconsin’s top running back since.

“That obviously saddens all of us,” then-Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst said after announcing Mellusi would miss the rest of the season. “There’s nothing more important, and why guys do this is to be able to play in these games. … I thought he gave a ton to this team, certainly in production, but a lot of other areas. And so sad about that. He’s competitive, and he’ll come back on it.”

Last season, Mellusi broke a bone in his arm in a 42-7 victory against Northwestern, sidelining him for four games.

He returned to play in Wisconsin’s final two regular-season games and its bowl. Mellusi rushed for 98 yards in his first game back, a 15-14 win against Nebraska, and turned in perhaps his best performance of the season in a 24-17 victory against Oklahoma State in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl, rushing for 77 yards and a touchdown.

"It hurts your heart," Badgers safety Hunter Wohler said Friday night. "That's a dude that has grinded and trained with us for the last three years. You feel bad for the guy. He can't catch a break. He works his tail off. He's been with us every step of the way. He never falters. He never slows down. It hurts. It hurts for him. It hurts for the team."

What Wisconsin teammates are saying about Chez Mellusi's injury

With 3:35 remaining in the contest and Wisconsin still leading by 13, Allen ran up the middle and bounced off two tackles for a four-yard touchdown scamper.

After dropping the ball, Allen held his hands in a heart shape before lifting up the index finger on his right hand – a reference to Mellusi’s jersey number.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Wisconsin's Chez Mellusi to miss rest of season with injury: Report