Gophers top receiver Chris Autman-Bell lost for season

For the second consecutive year, the Gophers will be missing one of their best offensive players for the bulk of the season.

Wide receiver Chris Autman-Bell, a sixth-year senior who has nearly 2,000 career receiving yards, suffered a lower leg injury Saturday against Colorado that will require surgery and end his season, Gophers coach P.J. Fleck said Monday.

Fleck said the Gophers will apply to the NCAA for a waiver for Autman-Bell to play a seventh year if the receiver chooses to play in 2023.

Last year, the Gophers lost Mohamed Ibrahim, the 2020 Big Ten Running Back of the Year, to a season-ending Achilles' tendon injury in the opener against Ohio State. The Gophers went on to finish 9-4 and tied for second place in the Big Ten West.

"Delayed, not denied," Autman-Bell tweeted. "Been through hell [and] back already, I'm ready for everything that comes with this."

Autman-Bell is scheduled to undergo surgery Wednesday. Fleck did not divulge specifics of the injury and deferred to Autman-Bell to provide that information if he chooses.

"It's unfortunate. Your heart breaks for him because he's worked incredibly hard,'' Fleck said. "But we have a lot of people on this football team — and Chris would tell you the exact same thing — here in Year Six that can make a ton of plays for us.''

'You still can't see it'

Autman-Bell is part of the "Encore Four'' group of sixth-year seniors that also includes Ibrahim, quarterback Tanner Morgan and center John Michael Schmitz, a quartet that is aiming to secure the Gophers' first West title.

A Kankakee, Ill., native, Autman-Bell was injured late in the second quarter of the 49-7 victory over Colorado. While leaping in attempt to catch a pass, he landed awkwardly and immediately grabbed his right knee after hitting the turf. He lay on the field for a few minutes, tended to by training staff and with Fleck by his side. He was helped off the field and put little weight on his right leg.

On Monday, the Gophers' fears were realized.

"When you watch the play over and over, you still can't see it,'' Fleck said of the noncontact injury. "There is not a twist, there is not a turn, it just goes, and that's football. There is nothing you can do to avoid it.''

Fleck said Autman-Bell "responded the way you'd see somebody respond with really hard news, but it didn't take him long to wipe those tears way. His mind was already on what he is going to do and accomplish and come back from.''

Time to step up

Autman-Bell's production won't be easy to replace. He leads the Gophers with 11 receptions for 214 yards and a touchdown this season and has 125 catches for 1,970 yards and 13 TDs in his career. The offense missed his presence early in the 2021 season when he was limited by an ankle injury suffered during training camp.

"We love Crab to death, and he's a huge part of this team,'' Morgan said Saturday, using Autman-Bell's nickname. "Whatever happens or whatever it is, he's always gonna be a huge part of this team. We had guys come in and be able to step up and make plays, which is what it's all about.''

Morgan has spread the ball around this season. Tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford is the Gophers' second-leading receiver with eight catches for 127 yards and a touchdown, and wide receiver Mike Brown-Stephens has six grabs for 107 yards.

Wideouts Dylan Wright (four catches, 58 yards) and Clay Geary (four catches, 73 yards) each had spectacular TD grabs against Colorado, and Daniel Jackson, the team's second-leading receiver in 2021, caught two passes for 26 yards in his 2022 debut after missing the first two games because of injury.

Those players, plus Ibrahim, the nation's second-leading rusher at 154.7 yards per game, will be counted on to keep the Gophers offense moving.