There has been a noticeable void in the Texas Southern Tigers lineup since after the season opener and that’s been at quarterback where star junior Andrew Body has been missing.
That void will be extended after Body announced on his Twitter page late Thursday night that he will be taking a medical redshirt, which means he is done for the season after playing only in the season opener. Body did not reveal what his injury is, but he suffered a shoulder injury at the end of last season and had an offseason procedure to repair it.
“After multiple Doctor Visits and Conversation with my family, We have decided that it is necessary for my health, to proceed with a Medical Redshirt this season,” Body wrote on his page. “It wasn’t an easy decision, it is very disappointing to be unable to compete this Football season.But I do look forward to next year. GOD willing I will be 1000%.”
Body did not play for the third straight game this past weekend when the Tigers fell to Grambling State 35-23 and dropped to 0-4 on the season. TSU coach Clarence McKinney had said little about Body until this week when questioned about the junior’s mysterious absence.
For the first time, McKinney hinted that it’s injury-related when asked by The Defender during the weekly SWAC Football Coaches Media Call about his status. Body made his announcement Thursday night after weeks of silence.
“Without giving out any medical information, we are going to allow Andrew to put out a statement,” McKinney said to The Defender. “Basically, from a HIPAA Law standpoint, he will put out a statement about what he wants to inform the world about his situation. We are going to allow him to handle that via social media.”
While there had been heavy speculation that he might take a redshirt year in order to heal, now all eyes will turn to whether or not Body returns to TSU for his final two seasons. He will have two years of eligibility remaining when he returns to action.
Body is coming off a shoulder injury at the end of last season that required offseason surgery. He completed 18 of 38 passes for 286 yards and three touchdowns and three interceptions in the season-opening 37-34 loss to Prairie View.
The school has not commented on him redshirting and Body has not been made available to the media to discuss his situation.
“He wants to play. That’s always possible,” McKinney said when asked Monday by The Defender if there is a plan for Body to play this season. “There are some things that we’ve talked about doing with him. But the ultimate decision really is his decision along with the information he gets from the doctors.”
In the meantime, the Tigers (0-4 overall, 0-2 in the SWAC, have had to rely on first-year sophomore Jace Wilson to carry the offense. He has improved since being thrust into the starting role at Toledo earlier this month.
During last week’s loss to Grambling, Wilson threw for 153 yards and three touchdowns. Wilson, who is from Missouri City and began his collegiate career at Furman, has completed 31 of 63 passes for 349 yards, four touchdowns and one interception over the first three starts of his career.
“We ‘ve seen Jace grow within our scheme with the more reps he gets,” said McKinney, whose team will host Lincoln (Calif.) for Homecoming this weekend. “He has had an opportunity to perform at a high level this past weekend, had a few drops that our guys wouldn’t normally do.
“Jace has taken the baton from Andrew so far and become the leader of the team. He’s done some things that we knew he could do and he has done some things that we didn’t expect him to be able to do. We’re just excited about having him just continue to improve each week.”
