Terrapin running back Josh Allen’s 21 touchdowns tie him for sixth on the team’s all-time rushing touchdown list. But now he will have to wait another year before attempting to move up on the list.
The Terps announced Allen will redshirt his senior season and sit out until 2006 as a result of a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and other damage in his left knee. The injury occurred late in the second quarter of the team’s final game of the season against Wake Forest.
Last season, Allen started in nine of the team’s 11 games. He rushed for 533 yards and five touchdowns. He also caught eight passes for a total of 96 yards, including the game-breaking 72-yard touchdown reception against Florida State. Between Allen and senior Sammy Maldonado, the two racked up 1,093 yards on 282 carries.
The team decided not to announce the severity of the injury in the weeks following the game. Instead, the news broke Wednesday at Pro Day, where Allen was seen and questioned about the injury, according to team spokesman Greg Creese.
The ACL injury Allen suffered is being compared to that of Willis McGahee of the Buffalo Bills. McGahee suffered his injury in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl while playing for the University of Miami and sat out his entire first NFL season.
McGahee was selected by the Buffalo Bills in the first round of the 2003 NFL draft. Last year, McGahee played in all 16 games with the Bills and rushed for over 1,000 yards. He did not suffer any setbacks.
If Allen decided to play, his chances of starting were not good. The running back decided to use his redshirt option to fully recover from the injury and come back healthy for the 2006 season. Allen declined to talk about the news.
With Maldonado graduating, the injury creates a sudden opening and a sizable gap to fill for the Terps’ running backs next season. Junior Mario Merrills, sophomore J.P. Humber, and freshmen Lance Ball and Keon Lattimore will compete for the starting spot. Merrills might have the inside track since he will be the team’s only senior tailback next year.
Merrills has only carried the ball 96 times in his three seasons with the Terps.
