UH football receiver Marquez Stevenson tries to speed past an SMU defender during the 2019 season. | Trevor Nolley/The Cougar
The Houston football team was defeated in a 44-21 blowout against UCF on Saturday afternoon, but the team also suffered other losses in the contest when senior receiver Marquez Stevenson left the game with an apparent lower leg injury.
“Speedy,” as he is known by his teammates on the football field, left the game during the first quarter against UCF after making a 12-yard catch. He limped towards the sidelines.
After the game, head coach Dana Holgorsen said that he had no specific knowledge of what happened to the 6-foot wideout, but he did say that he had been taken into the locker room for an X-ray and later came back out onto the field in street clothes and reportedly a boot on his left foot.
“It hurts,” Holgorsen said after the game. “He’s one of the most dynamic players of the country.”
The Houston head coach also said that left tackle Patrick Paul is out for the season. He was the starting tackle for the Cougars. Holgorsen also told reporters that linebacker Donavan Mutin was hurt in the Navy game and did not practice all week. He did not play against UCF.
Despite the injuries to Houston’s offense, the head coach and quarterback Clayton Tune said the Cougars have enough talent to try and replace their production, specifically in the receiving corps.
“When you’re without your top playmaker, that tends to hurt you,” Holgorsen said, “but nobody cares about that. We’re not going to use that as an excuse.”
Stevenson leads the Cougars in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns this season.
“It obviously hurts, but it’s not the end of the game and world,” Tune said. “He’s a great player that makes huge plays for us, but we have guys that can step up and makes plays as well. It’s the next man mentality.”
