Weber State football: 'Cats lose one of their best weapons

OGDEN — The Weber State Wildcats earned their first victory of the season with a win over Idaho State on Saturday night, but it came with a devastating loss.

Tight end Cody Nakamura shredded his knee when he was tackled after making a 13-yard reception in the final seconds of the second quarter against the Bengals. Nakamura is out for the season with a torn MCL and PCL and a partially torn ACL. A senior, Nakamura is looking at an eight-month rehab.

"It's sad to see one of your guys go down like that," said Weber State quarterback Cameron Higgins, a close friend of Nakamura's. "It's a huge (loss). He's a big part of our offense. We could do a lot of things with him. He can block, run routes. He's one of those dual-threat guys."

Nakamura was recruited to Weber State as a wide receiver but moved to tight end a couple of seasons ago when the team had some injury issues at the position. He had developed into a quality red-zone target and somewhat of a security blanket for Higgins. In three games this season, Nakamura had 20 catches for 178 yards and a touchdown.

"The guy's got such good hands, he's just a natural for the spot," said Wildcats coach Ron McBride. "He knows how to get to the open area, he's got great hands, he doesn't drop anything, he catches in traffic, he knows how to get off coverage. The guy is a fantastic football player. It's hard to (quantify) the importance he was to what we're doing."

Weber State will apply to the NCAA to get a sixth year of eligibility for Nakamura, who redshirted his freshman season in 2005.

McBride said three tight ends — Tyrell Francisco, Kevin Halfill and Brian Jankowski — will vie to replace Nakamura at tight end. It won't be easy, as Nakamura was the team's second-leading receiver behind Tim Toone and was a preseason all-Big Sky pick.

WALKING WOUNDED: No other player besides Nakamura is out for the season, but the Wildcats are pretty dinged up after three games. Defensive lineman Ryan Eastman missed the Idaho State game and is out again this week with a knee injury. Receiver Mike Phillips sat out the Idaho State game with a knee injury and defensive end Kevin Linehan separated his shoulder against the Bengals. Center Kyle Mutcher injured his shoulder against Wyoming and hasn't returned.

McBride expects Phillips, Linehan and Mutcher to return against the Vikings. He said the team's tough early schedule — against two Mountain West Conference teams and a rivalry game against Idaho State — has played a role in the team's injuries.