Arizona Pac-12 defensive player of the year Scooby Wright III left the game Thursday night after hurting his knee in a win over UTSA 42-32, according to ESPN's David Lombardi.
Wright limped off halfway through the first quarter and was seen be cameras icing the injured knee on the sideline. The extent to the injury is unknown, but Wright was expected to get an MRI following the game, according to Jason Bartel of the Arizona Desert Swarm.
"I don't think it's bad, ACL, MCL, or anything, but I hate to speculate, but we'll see what happens," head coach Rich Rodriquez said via Arizona Desert Swarm. "You hate to lose his leadership, but you lose his playmaking ability more than anything else."
Anthony Gimino of the Wildcat Report was told by Wright's father that the injury was "not major" before his son went for the MRI.
Wright was a machine for the Wildcats defense last season, totaling 163 tackles and forcing five fumbles. Wright led all of division I-A college football with tackles last season, and whenever watching Arizona's defense on the field, he seemed always to find the ball. The junior linebacker was fourth in all of college football last season with 14 sacks, according to ESPN.
The Wildcats will travel to Nevada next week and hope their defense can hold better than they did against UTSA, as giving them 32 points was more than Rodriquez would like to see. Depending on the results of the MRI, the Wildcats might play it safe with Wright because they will play UCLA on Sept. 26.
The Pac-12 has some high-powered offenses including Oregon, UCLA, USC, and in state rival Arizona State. The Wildcats have three of four of those teams on their schedule, and the one that isn't, Oregon, will likely be waiting for them if they make the Pac-12 championship game again this season. Without Wright, Arizona's defense has a huge whole, and even with Wright last season the Wildcats ranked 8th in yards allowed per game in the Pac-12. Rodriquez and Wright will likely both be hoping for a speedy recovery because Arizona's defense depends on it.