Florida Atlantic quarterback Casey Thompson tore his ACL in FAU’s 48-14 loss to Clemson last Saturday, head coach Tom Herman confirmed at a Monday press conference. Herman said that they are in the process of scheduling surgery for Thompson and that he will not be able to play for the rest of the season.
Herman confirmed that junior Daniel Richardson will start at quarterback against the University of Illinois on Saturday, marking the Central Michigan University transfer’s first start at FAU.
After Thompson went down on Saturday, Richardson shared snaps with redshirt junior Michael Johnson Jr., throwing for 120 yards and an interception.
In three games he played for FAU, Thompson threw for 509 yards, five touchdowns and five interceptions. He had a quarterback rating of 25.1%.
Before transferring to FAU to reunite with former University of Texas head coach Herman, Thompson played for the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers in the Big 10 Conference. In his one year there with the Cornhuskers, Thompson threw for 2,407 yards, 17 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He had a quarterback rating of 63.1%.
Thompson mentioned at a press conference after offensive practice in August how he joined FAU not solely because of his connection with Herman but because of first-year offensive coordinator Charlie Frye, a former quarterback coach for the Miami Dolphins and Penn State University staff member who worked with another Texas coach he knew.
The Owls have six other players in the quarterback room: one transfer quarterback, three freshmen and two returning quarterbacks from last year’s team.
FAU returned to practice Tuesday preparing for their final non-conference game of the season against Big 10 opponent, the University of Illinois Fighting Illini (1-2), on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. The game will be broadcasted on the Big 10 Network.
Maddox Greenberg is the Sports Editor for the University Press. Email [email protected] or DM via Twitter @MaddoxGreenberg and Instagram @maddoxblade04 for information regarding this or other stories.
