CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Mississippi State coach Jeff Lebby expressed optimism that Kamario Taylor escaped serious injury after the freshman quarterback was carted off the field in the final moments of Mississippi State’s 43-29 loss to Wake Forest on Friday night in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl.
With the Bulldogs trailing by 14 and under three minutes to play, Taylor was scrambling for extra yardage and his leg was hit awkwardly as he was tackled.
It appeared gruesome at the time. He writhed in obvious pain as play stopped, and teammates gathered around him. A few moments later, a cart came on the field to take Taylor, who is viewed as the team’s promising young future quarterback, to the locker room.
“Initial reports have been good, so we’ll continue to evaluate and get more information,” Lebby said.
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Lebby wouldn’t say immediately after the game what part of the body Taylor injured, or if he suffered broken bones or torn ligaments.
“I feel good about getting in the locker room, being able to talk, talk to our medical staff, and being able to see Kamario again,” Lebby added. “We’ll continue to evaluate.”
Taylor’s mother, LaQuandra Conner, posted a picture of her and her son on Facebook after the game. Conner wrote that the injury was to Taylor’s ankle and that “nothing is torn or broken.”
Taylor was making his second career start for the Bulldogs (5-8) after a promising initial appearance in a loss to No. 6 Ole Miss.
He finished 13-of-22 for 241 yards and a touchdown against Wake Forest. He also ran for 63 yards and another score. After taking a snap from the shotgun, he ran forward, dove over several players and extended the ball over the goal line.
“A ton of toughness, and there’s a ton of things to be excited about,” Lebby said about Taylor.
Lebby added: “For what he was able to get out of this bowl experience with 15 extra practices, the ability to go play in another game against a really good opponent, to me, that is huge for us as we’re continuing to build this thing.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
