No. 4 Huskies’ star LB Joe Mathis to undergo foot surgery, out for season
Nov 7, 2016, 12:21 PM
Joe Mathis, who will miss the rest of the season due to injury, is UW's sack leader with five. (AP)
(AP)
The No. 4 Washington Huskies are still undefeated, but they’ve suffered their first big loss of the season: star linebacker Joe Mathis will miss the rest of 2016 due to foot surgery.
Washington coach Chris Petersen broke the news during his weekly press conference Monday.
Mathis, a senior, still leads the Huskies with five sacks this season despite having missed the past three games with what was until Monday an unspecified injury. He finishes the year with 25 total tackles, including 7.5 tackles for loss, and one pass broken up.
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Petersen said that while Mathis had not suffered a setback in his attempt to rehab his injury but that surgery had been determined the necessary course of action last week.
The Ontario, Calif., native had stepped up into the role of UW’s top pass-rusher in 2016 after playing in lesser roles in what has been a deep corps of linebackers in recent years for defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski.
Junior Connor O’Brien has filled in at outside linebacker since Mathis suffered his injury. O’Brien has two sacks, 23 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and an interception in 2016. Redshirt freshman Benning Potoa’e will continue to see increased playing time in Mathis’ absence, as well.
