Looks like Texas won’t be the only team in Austin on Saturday without a running back. West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen said on his Statewide Sportsline show Thursday evening that senior Shawne Alston would not be traveling to Texas for this Saturday’s game.
“We’re going to move on without him this week,” Holgorsen said. “If he’s out there practicing next week, we’ll play him in the game. But he tried to go here for the last couple of days and just wasn’t able. He’s going to continue to get that thigh worked on and we’ll hopefully get him back next week.”
Like Texas, West Virginia uses multiple running backs in its offense. Alston started off the year hot against Marshall, rushing for 123 yards and two touchdowns. However, he suffered a thigh bruise the following week against James Madison and has been limited, if not absent altogether, ever since.
Alston’s absence was evident against Maryland as the Mountaineers were only able to rush for 25 yards. WVU ran for 151 yards last week against Baylor, led primarily by sophomore Andrew Buie. Dustin Garrison, the team’s leading rusher from a year ago, is still making his way back from an ACL injury he suffered right before the Orange Bowl.