Miami tight end Will Mallory to miss the rest of spring after injuring his shoulder
Starting tight end Will Mallory will miss the rest of spring practice for the Miami Hurricanes with a shoulder injury, a University of Miami spokesperson confirmed Thursday to the Miami Herald.
Mallory left practice early Tuesday in a cart with a sling on his arm and was not at Greentree Practice Fields on Thursday. The exact severity of the injury, however, is not yet known.
Mallory also missed last spring while recuperating from shoulder surgery.
With Mallory sidelined, Elijah Arroyo will have a chance to be the top tight end for the rest of camp, while fellow tight ends Dominic Mammarelli, Kahlil Brantley and Jaleel Skinner — a highly touted freshman — should all see expanded opportunities.
Mallory is about to be a fifth-year senior after he decided to return and use the extra year of eligibility granted by the NCAA because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Last season was his first as the starting tight end — he was former tight end Brevin Jordan’s backup the previous three years — and he set career marks with 30 catches for 347 yards, and tied a career high with four touchdowns.
Mallory is the Hurricanes’ second most productive returning receiver, behind wide receiver Xavier Restrepo, and expected to be one of the leaders of the offense in new coach Mario Cristobal’s debut season.
“I wanted to return because I wasn’t ready to leave yet. There’s a lot left I wanted to show, a lot left I wanted to prove to myself,” Mallory said March 9. “With everything going on here, I’m very fortunate to come back for a year like this, as well. This is a great opportunity for me to get to be with all of these coaches, all of these players. I’m just really fortunate to be at this university. It’s hard for me to leave, so there’s a lot left that I wanted to do, prove to myself, so I’m just excited to get back and get to work.”
Mallory said he thinks this tight ends group “is probably the most talented depth-wise that we’ve had” since he got to Coral Gables in 2018.
“This is a great opportunity for me to get to work with these guys and hopefully show them the ropes a little bit. They push me every day, which is most important because they make me better. Without them, I couldn’t do anything,” Mallory said. ”You can’t ask for better. We’re in really good hands.”
