Louisville has been without running back Michael Dyer so far, after he tweaked his thigh during an August scrimmage, an injury that has lingered ever since. The Cardinals only managed to rush for 79 yards in their loss to Virginia – who to their credit has a stout but not stellar front line, and Louisville fans are having a tough time setting aside the notion that Dyer would have surely made a positive impact on that game.
The “woulda coulda shoulda” game could be over soon though, as Dyer is slated to return very soon. According to a report from The Courier Journal, head coach Bobby Petrino has indicated that Dyer might even see the field as early as Saturday when the Cardinals take on Florida International.
“We saw some really good things from him,” Petrino said. “The thing that’s hard on that is it’s not only the injury that he’s overcoming, it’s the soreness from not doing those things for five weeks — not running hard and cutting and doing all that. The rest of his body is sore.”
The Cardinals should be able to win handily without Dyer, as Florida International is not exactly a feared opponent, so there is no sense of urgency. But this is a great opportunity to get the 2011 BCS Championship MVP some snaps, help get his legs back under him and readjust.
Petrino is better off easing Dyer in against a team like FIU where there is much less pressure to excel, as opposed to next week when they begin the girth of their ACC slate.
*Photo credits to Jamie Rhodes, USA Today Sports
