One of the best wide receivers in college football will miss the remainder of the season. Jaylen Waddle, the superstar pass catcher for the Alabama Crimson Tide, suffered a broken ankle on Saturday afternoon during the first half of the team’s game against Tennessee.
Waddle received the opening kickoff against the Volunteers and came down awkwardly on his right leg. He spent some time on the ground before needing assistance making his way into the back.
Jaylen Waddle went down on this play and went straight to the locker room
— PFF College (@PFF_College) October 24, 2020
While the first half went on and the Tide eventually took a 28-10 lead into the locker room, Waddle had to leave the stadium in an ambulance.
Alabama WR Jaylen Waddle, was carted off the field earlier, now an ambulance arrived.
This sucks. pic.twitter.com/ZQYyaVuGYp
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) October 24, 2020
Then, in a bit of news that seemed inevitable given the circumstances under which Waddle left Neyland, Alabama coach Nick Saban told CBS that Waddle will miss the remainder of the year, with the team announcing that the diagnosis is a broken ankle.
From Nick Saban – WR Jaylen Waddle OUT FOR THE YEAR.
Interview on CBS soon.@AlabamaFTBL
— Jamie Erdahl Buckman (@JamieErdahl) October 24, 2020
News: Jaylen Waddle suffered a broken ankle.
— Aaron Suttles (@AaronSuttles) October 24, 2020
Despite the fact that Alabama had a pair of first round picks in its wide receiving corps last season, Waddle was able to stand out, and set the stage for a potentially monster 2020 campaign. Waddle, prior to his injury, caught 25 balls for 557 yards and four scores for the No. 2 team in the sport. While the Crimson Tide always have players capable of filling in, losing a player of Waddle’s caliber is a gigantic loss.