Utah Utes football: Shelby out for season with torn ACL

Utah lost more than a football game Saturday at TCU. Over the weekend, they learned that starting defensive end Derrick Shelby will be sidelined for the rest of the season with a knee injury.

The sophomore, who is fifth on the team with 44 tackles, suffered a torn ACL.

"He was a very solid, very consistent player for us all season long — as he was last year," said head coach Kyle Whittingham. "We'll miss him. No doubt about that."

Whittingham noted that Nai Fotu, Christian Cox and Junior Tui'one will have to pick up the slack in Shelby's absence.

In other injury news, senior defensive tackle Kenape Eliapo is still out with an undisclosed illness related to an eye ailment. Whittingham is optimistic he could return for the bowl game.

Defensive back Victor Spikes will also likely miss the season-ending games against San Diego State and BYU. He injured his hand against TCU.