The Utah Utes will host the Florida Gators in Week 1, but it has been unclear whether they’ll have their starting quarterback for the season opener. So is Cam Rising playing? Rising’s early season availability has remained in question throughout the offseason as he is recovering from an ACL tear he suffered in the Rose Bowl. Let’s look at the most recent Cam Rising injury updates as we assess whether he will be available in Week 1.
UPDATE (8/30/23 at 1:35 p.m. ET): Cam Rising is not expected to start Week 1’s Florida-Utah game, per Utah insider Josh Newman.
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Cam Rising Injury Update: Is Utah’s Quarterback Playing Thursday?
Cam Rising Injury Update
In one of the toughest breaks of the 2022 college football season, Utah quarterback Cam Rising suffered an ACL tear in the Rose Bowl. The injury forced Utah to pivot to backup quarterback Bryson Barnes, who completed 52.6% of his passes for 112 yards, a score and an interception as the Utes fell to the Nittany Lions, 35-21.
Rising has been nursing the injury since getting surgery in January. As of August 18, Rising remained limited in practice. There was a lack of optimism later in the month, but as of Monday, head coach Kyle Whittingham was listing him as QB1 on the depth chart. However, he refused to elaborate when asked whether that meant Rising had been cleared to play on Thursday.
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Is Cam Rising Playing for Utah in Week 1?
So is Cam Rising playing for Utah in Week 1? The short answer is that we don’t know. Whittingham’s refusal to elaborate could mean that Rising can play but the head coach wants to keep his cards close to his chest — or it could mean that Rising certainly isn’t available, and, again, Whittingham wants to keep his cards close to his chest.
The betting markets may offer some insight into Rising’s status. Florida was trading as a 4.5-point underdog earlier in the month but is now trading at 6.5, which suggests at least some action has come in on Utah, which might be related to Rising’s status. Update: As of Wednesday morning, Florida was again trading as a 4.5-point underdog.
However, that isn’t a lot of movement, and Rising is certainly worth more than two points, especially when compared to Utah’s questionable set of backup quarterbacks. Keep a close eye on the news as Thursday’s kickoff approaches.
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