WVU HC Neal Brown Leaves RB Tony Mathis’ Status Uncertain for Iowa State Game

MORGANTOWN, W.Va – With CJ Donaldson set to miss the rest of the season, West Virginia head coach added more uncertainty about the running game this week with news about Tony Mathis’ availability.

Brown said Mathis’ status for WVU’s upcoming game in Ames, Iowa has not yet been determined. He continued to say that he would evaluate Mathis throughout the rest of the week in practice to determine if he can play against Iowa State.

WVU HC Neal Brown says RB Tony Mathis will be a later in the week decision if he plays this week.

— Mike J. Asti (@MikeAsti11) November 1, 2022

Mathis missed the TCU game after suffering an injury the week earlier in a loss to Texas Tech. Donaldson was able to step up with an increase in carries due to Mathis’ absence on Saturday afternoon. Unfortunately for the Mountaineers, Donaldson left the game twice and now is done for the year. Donaldson finished with 104 rushing yards for an average of 5.5 per touch.

On 99 carries so far this season, Mathis has totaled 492 yards and 5 touchdowns for an average of exactly 5 yards per carry. Already without Donaldson, Mathis missing the game will mean a larger workload for Justin Johnson Jr., who ran for 36 yards on 10 carries during the TCU game and has 285 yards and 3 touchdowns to this point in 2022 as either the third or second option depending on the week.

Mathis was named Big 12 Co-Offensive Player of the Week in his last outing for his 163-yard performable in a win over Baylor.