Vanderbilt loses another starter for season with LT Andrew Jelks' injury

By foxsports
Published

The Vanderbilt Commodores have just lost one of their key contributors for the season as junior offensive tackle Andrew Jelks suffered a knee injury in Wednesday's practice. Jelks had been penciled in as the team's starting left tackle in offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig's new scheme. 

A former Freshman All-American in 2013, Jelks had started the previous 21 games for the Commodores at either left or right tackle. Replacing the 6-foot-6, 307-pound lineman now becomes a key concentration for Vanderbilt, as Jelks was expected to keep the quarterback's blindside protected in 2015. 

“I’m really disappointed for Andrew because he’s such a fine young man,” head coach Derek Mason told the Tennessean. “Andrew was having an excellent camp and was looking forward to having a big year. He's a tremendous talent who commands respect throughout the locker room. Andrew’s a dedicated hard worker, and I know he will come back even stronger.”

“It’s time for others to step up and claim a more substantial role in the success of our offense,” Mason said. “We definitely have players on our roster that can fill the void left by Andrew’s departure."

(h/t Tennessean)