Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
SALT LAKE CITY — Everybody has an opinion on Cam Rising Watch™ 2024 — or so it seems on various corners of the internet.
Regardless of whether you're a Utah fan or not, there's a chance you've talked to someone about the Rising injury this season (or last).
The reality is, it's been 670 days since Rising last played a full game of college football — at no real fault of his own. Or, I guess, that depends on what you think of the situation.
After rehabbing last year from a serious knee injury that required the starting quarterback to miss the entirety of 2023 season, Rising suddenly found himself back on the sidelines after being hit into a hydration station during the first half of a Week 2 game against Baylor.
His was an apparent injury to his throwing hand, leaving his status in question for the last few weeks.
The injury — or at least the knowledge of one — has been easy to recognize, but everything beyond that has be shrouded in mystery. As is his policy, head coach Kyle Whittingham doesn't talk about injuries unless they're season-ending.
Rising's doesn't fall under that category, so Whittingham doesn't offer details. At most, he offers wishful optimism that his star quarterback will be back soon under center, leading an offense that was expected to be one of the best in Whittingham's tenure at Utah.
The hush-hush nature of his injury, though, has led many to speculate about anything and everything related to Rising, who has been designated as a "game-time decision" the last two weeks.
Whittingham even said Rising was "really close" to playing after Utah's loss to Arizona on Saturday.
Close, but not available.
As such, Rising has become somewhat of a lightning rod to a frustrated fan base that hasn't seen their starting quarterback play a full game in more than a year. Surely, he could play through the pain, right?
It's not as easy as some on the internet would paint the situation.
"All I'll say is Cam Rising wants to play worse than anybody, and when he's able to he will," Whittingham said on Tuesday. "And it's not like he's been just able to play and not going; that's not the case. ... I can tell you for certain that he wants to play, and as soon as he gets the go ahead, he will play. And we hope it's this next game."
That next game is more than a week away as Utah takes its first bye of the season before a road contest next Friday against Arizona State.
There's optimism — there's that word again — that the extended break will be enough for Rising to be back under center to finish out the 2024 season. His return to the field is not lost on Whittingham, either.
"He's one of the best quarterbacks in the country," Whittingham said. "It's a quarterback driven game. It's the most important position on the field — and it's not even close. And so if you've got an elite quarterback, like Cam Rising, yeah, that definitely helps to get him back on the field and give us a big boost."
Rising will be back on the field when he's ready to play, but don't expect Whittingham to expound upon when that might be.
In Rising's absence, freshman Isaac Wilson has filled in well, going 2-1 in his three starts. But the former Corner Canyon star still has a ways to go before he's on the same plane as QB1. It continues to be a learning process for Wilson as he gains valuable reps as a starter.
Assuming Utah turns over the reins to Wilson next season as the team's starter, these starter minutes become invaluable to the young QB.
As evidenced by the three games he started under center, Wilson can move the ball down field — making occasional plays that go beyond his freshman experience — but it's still going to take some time.
And it'll take patience from a fan base that was sold on Rising and got a backup working through his first collegiate reps instead.
"He's doing some really good things, but he's also making good freshmen mistakes, so there's a learning curve," Whittingham said. "He's done some things that have exceeded our expectations, and some other things that are very freshman like. But he's showing a lot of toughness and courage. He's got a great deal of confidence, he's got a lot of tools. He's got a lot of natural gifts to succeed at the position."
Wilson continues to be a viable and strong asset for Utah to lead the offense — even as he works through some occasional growing pains — but Rising remains the star of the offense, and the one many are anxious to see back on the field.
