Oregon sophomore runningback Remene Alston Jr. is done for at least the regular season with a broken bone in his foot, according to head coach Mike Bellotti. Alston will have surgery on the foot Thursday.
Alston is the third most productive tailback on the roster despite being fourth on the depth chart behind senior Jeremiah Johnson and juniors LeGarrette Blount and Andre Crenshaw. He has rushed 21 times for 161 yards, (7.7 yards per carry) and a touchdown. His highest productivity came at Washington State with six carries for 73 yards. His touchdown came in an 11-carry, 71 yard performance against Utah State and he caught a 10-yard pass, his first reception of the season, against Southern California.
Bellotti put the time-table for Alston’s return at anywhere from six to 12 weeks, meaning the earliest he could possibly return would be for a bowl game.
“It’s really just going to depend on how it takes,” Bellotti said. “They usually have to pin them to make sure the joint fits correctly and then the problem is the lack of circulation in that area … It’s really difficult to project.”
Alston suffered the injury during practice Monday when he stepped on a teammate’s foot on a kickoff drill and rolled his ankle.
Alston has been a starter for the Ducks on multiple special teams units this year and has recorded two tackles to go along with his offensive production.
Trainers and coaches were initially concerned about the ankle. When they x-rayed it, they discovered the broken bone in his foot.
Given Oregon’s depth at tailback, Alston won’t be rushed back into action to fill a need. For now, it’s just unfortunate for Alston, but should an injury bug strike the runningback position his presence will surely be missed.
Then the injury to Alston would affect the redshirt status of freshman runningback LaMichael James, who has recovered fully from a concussion suffered in practice more than a week ago. For now, he is still on track to redshirt this season, Bellotti said.
The rest of the squad is as healthy coming off the bye week as they’ve been all season, as several players returned to full-pad practices this week, including junior cornerback Walter Thurmond III. The offensive line has also seen a resurgence in health, chiefly at the tackle position, as this week has seen seniors Fenuki Tupou and Jacob Hucko return to full pads along with sophomore C.E. Kaiser.
“That’s awesome,” Bellotti said of the return of so many players to full duty. “I would say that we’re as healthy as we’ve been since fall camp.”
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