What happened to Mario Anderson? Exploring Memphis RB's return after leg injury against Charlotte
Memphis Tigers running back Mario Anderson appeared to have suffered a leg injury while rushing in the first offensive play of the second half against the Charlotte 49ers during Saturday's Week 9 game. He limped off the field and went back to the locker room.
In his absence, true freshman Makari Bodiford played well as lead runner during that offensive drive, which resulted in him rushing for a touchdown. Anderson was back on the field as the lead rusher in the Tigers' next offensive possession.
Anderson is having a good game. He has already logged 121 rushing yards on 21 carries, including a touchdown.
The Tigers RB room is already stretched out with Sutton Smith having been ruled out for the year due to a knee injury he suffered in the season opener. Greg Desrosiers has also been out since Sept. 14 due to a clavicle injury he sustained against Florida State. Moreover, Anderson's backup RB, Brandon Thomas, is not in action against the 49ers due to injury.
Memphis coach not impressed with Mario Anderson's unsportsmanlike conduct, which led to ejection against USF
In Week 7, the Memphis Tigers played the South Florida Bulls.
In the second quarter, Mario Anderson and USF defensive tackle Doug Blue-Eli were involved in unsportsmanship conduct, which led to Anderson getting ejected from the game.
The two confronted each other after Anderson took a hit and went down as he carried the ball. As both teams were getting back to position, the Tigers' RB allegedly spat on Blue-Eli.
Mario Anderson was having a solid game as he registered four catches for 15 yards and a touchdown. He also added 18 rushing yards on six carries.
Following the game, Memphis coach Ryan Silverfield called out Anderson's "despicable" action. He said that's not how he wants to identify his program with.
"First and foremost, his actions are completely despicable," Silverfield said during his Monday news conference. "That's not what we do in our program, and so I apologize on behalf of our program, the way we represented ourselves and our culture."
"We played a team that was one of the most penalized teams in all of college football. We fell down to that level, and shame on us. But we'll learn from those mistakes."
The following game, Mario Anderson had a strong performance against North Texas. He rushed for a season high of 183 yards on 22 carries, resulting in four touchdowns.