The Oregon Ducks, which play Ohio State in the National Championship Game Monday night, face a sizable challenge in playing without star wide receiver Darren Carrington, who was suspended for a failed NCAA drug test, according to multiple reports.
Coach Mark Helfrich on Saturday said he has not addressed Carrington’s absence with his players.
“Things happen very quickly and in a collegiate atmosphere. You don’t have to have a team meeting and nor would we. We haven’t sat around and had a team meeting about this guy being injured or have a team meeting about this guy being dinged up or have another team meeting about somebody else being unavailable and we never will,” he said at the team’s Media Day in Dallas.
Helfrich, who would not offer specifics regarding Carrington’s ineligibility, said: “We don’t have a meeting to announce or talk about anyone’s lack of availability that’s just not something we do. We’ve talked about this enough. I appreciate it.”
In any case, Oregon will need to adjust to life without Carrington, a redshirt freshman who caught 37 passes for 704 yards and four touchdowns, and speedster wide receiver Devon Allen, who injured his knee in the Rose Bowl against Florida State Jan. 1. Allen caught 41 passes for 684 yards and seven touchdowns.
Marcus Mariota, the Oregon star quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner, said he hasn’t talked to Carrington, but that he has been “getting so much support from the team.”
“You’re a little disappointed, but at the same time, I think a lot guys feel guilty because we should’ve helped him,” he said. “It’s tough but we have to be ready for the game and whoever the next guy is, he needs to step up.
Mariota added: “He’s gotta make his decisions and I think he’ll learn a lot from this.”
