Cody Clements
UAB quarterback Cody Clements gets up after being sacked for a 5-yard loss against Middle Tennessee during the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 18, 2014, in Murfreesboro, Tenn. Middle Tennessee won 34-22. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
(Mark Humphrey)
UAB might have lost more than its second Conference USA game this past Saturday.
Starting quarterback Cody Clements and wide receiver J.J. Nelson were banged up in the 34-22 defeat at the hands of Middle Tennessee.
Today, first year Blazers coach Bill Clark said he and his staff would evaluate the status of both players leading into Saturday's 11 a.m. showdown at Arkansas (3-4, 0-4 in the SEC) at Monday's weekly media luncheon.
Clements left the game late in the fourth quarter against the Blue Raiders after taking a shot and wasn't made available for post-game interviews.
"We'll see how he progresses throughout the week," Clark said of the 6-foot-2, junior college transfer from Colorado. "We're just going to see what happens. See where he's at."
Clements was rated fourth in the nation in completion percentage, heading into the MTSU game, connecting on slightly better than 70 percent of his pass attempts. Through seven games, he's 116 of 166 attempts for 1,540 yards and 10 touchdowns while being picked off six times as rated second in the league in pass efficiency at 160.5.
Against the Blue Raiders, he completed 19 of 30 attempts for 185 yards and a touchdown but was intercepted twice, both in the fourth quarter.
If Clements can't go, backup Jeremiah Briscoe will get the start for Conference USA's No. 3 offense. Briscoe, a freshman from Houston, will receive increased reps in practice. He was a strong contender for the starting gig in the preseason and dazzled, at times, against now top-ranked Mississippi State back in Week 2, throwing for 231 yards and two touchdowns on 5-for-15 passing.
Briscoe wasn't nearly as impressive in last outing when he completed 2 of 5 attempts for eight yards and was picked off twice in a 34-20 loss against FIU.
"The biggest thing is both these guys have competed since the spring and they both take command the same way," UAB offensive lineman Hayden Naumann said. "Some people would say Cody's more mobile, and that could be true, but, when it comes down to it, it's our quarterback. We gotta protect him."
The 5-foot-11, 160-pound Nelson, who leads Conference USA in yards per catch, was shaken up after taking a hit on a 3-yard pass, his lone reception of the game, with 3:29 left in the third. He sported a foam neck brace when he walked in and out of the Blazers' locker room before boarding the team bus, following the game.
"He's good. I just think he's a little sore and we'll evaluate him as the week goes on. Everything came back negative," Clark said. "It was scary to see that mass of humanity piled in there on him. He's not a big guy."
Blazers fans should be encouraged by the performance of Jamari Staples. The 6-4 sophomore wide receiver has his best game of the season since recovering from an injury earlier in the year against MTSU, leading the Blazers with four catches for 83 yards and a touchdown.
"I'm 100 percent. I'm feeling great," Staple said after the game. I feel like I'm at my best right now."
Clark said wouldn't rule out sitting out players who weren't 100 percent at Arkansas to ensure they're ready to for the Blazers' final four league games against Florida Atlantic, Louisiana Tech, Marshall and Southern Miss.
"You want to win every game but you don't want to play guys who are banged up," he said.