Wyoming Running Back to Miss Season with Knee Injury
LARAMIE -- Ryken Banks, lined up deep in the backfield last Saturday, took the handoff and jetted toward the line of scrimmage.
The freshman running back made just one slight cut as he approached the hole during Wyoming's initial scrimmage before falling awkwardly to the turf inside War Memorial Stadium.
His Legend High School teammate, Jaden Lawrence, came off the east sideline and aided trainers in helping Banks off the field.
He didn't put any weight on his right leg.
Jay Sawvel's worst fear has since been confirmed.
"Ryken tore his ACL," the third-year head coach said on Tuesday. "... Ryken, in his situation, I think there might be a little bit of something else that goes on in it, so it could be a little bit more involved. But we'll see. I mean, some of it, you get the MRI readout -- we know it's an ACL and we know there's a couple possibilities that could be something meniscal, too -- but then when the surgeon gets in there he kind of makes that decision."
Banks is the fifth Cowboy to suffer a season-ending knee injury, joining wide receiver Tyler Nystrom, offensive tackle Nate Geiger, defensive tackle Cody Crawford and quarterback Taylor Hasselbeck. Fellow running back Diore Hubbard is also recovering from a torn ACL suffered last season at West Virginia.
All three FBS military academies -- Air Force, Army and Navy -- offered Banks after he rushed for more than 1,200 yards and found the end zone 25 times during his senior season. Most of the Ivy League took notice, too. So did Wyoming's Border War rival Colorado State.
Banks, the 5A Southern Conference Player of the Year, also turned down offers to Ohio, Montana and Sacramento State. Defending national champion Indiana showed late interest. The three-star recruit and 29th-best prospect in the state of Colorado, according to 247sports.com, instead stuck to his commitment.
"We've had a good run of players from Legend at the University of Wyoming, from Chad Muma to Jaden Lawrence," head coach Jay Sawvel said on national signing day last December. "A year ago, I went to see Jaden in high school. It was actually the first game that I went to on a Friday night as a head coach at Wyoming. I went to see Jaden Lawrence and one guy that really stood out to me was Ryken Banks. I was like, 'this guy is outstanding.' So, we've been on Ryken for a long period of time. We feel really excited about him."
As the Cowboys near the midway point of fall camp, presumed starter Samuel "Tote" Harris, Markell Holman, Nico Hamilton and Lawrence are receiving the lion's share of the work out of the backfield. Dontae Burch and Nikos Varelas are also in the rotation.
Hubbard, who led the Mountaineers in rushing last year with 335 yards on 96 attempts, is expected to be fully cleared sometime in September, Sawvel said.
Banks, who stands 6 foot and tips the scales at 206, will now have just four seasons of eligibility remaining because of the NCAA's recently sanctioned "5-in-5 rule."
"I Feel for him," Sawvel added. "You love his attitude. You know, like the worst thing that can happen, in a sense, is when a kid apologizes to you for getting injured. You know, that tells you what his heart is. So that's tough, as a coach, sometimes when a guy does that."
LATEST UW FOOTBALL NEWS VIA 7220SPORTS:
* Pokes Practice Report: Disruptive Defensive Front Steals Show
* Pokes Practice Report: Red-Zone Woes Still Linger
* Dainsus Miller Set To Return To Cowboy Football Program
* Drew Brees Shouts Out Former UW Coaches in Hall of Fame Speech
* Wyoming, Like Akron, Once Had a Gimmick That Panned Out
* Is There Really a QB Battle in Laramie or Just Lip Service?
* Sawvel: 'I Just Want to Score a Bunch of Points'
* Pokes Practice Report: Fatigue Leads to Follies
* Wyoming's Smiley Samoan Slides Into Potential Starting Role
* Pokes Practice Report: Packing on Pounds ... The Good Kind
* Cowboys' Offensive Line Depth Takes Hit This Offseason
* Wyoming QB Taylor Hasselbeck Suffers Season-Ending Knee Injury
* 5 Things I'll Be Keeping an Eye On During Wyoming's Fall Camp
* Paul Nunu -- Wyoming's 'Hawaiian Punch' -- Passes Away at 71
Just The Facts: Size Doesn't Matter For Wyoming's War Memorial Stadium
Gallery Credit: 7220Sports.com
- Just The Facts: Size Doesn't Matter For Wyoming's War Memorial Stadium