West Virginia Mountaineers Quarterback Clint Trickett Retires After Five Concussions Before Liberty Bowl
By Larry Snyder
When the West Virginia Mountaineers take the field on Monday in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl against Texas A&M, it will be without quarterback Clint Trickett.
The 6-foot-2, 186-pound signal caller revealed to reporters on Friday that he has suffered five concussions, including two that he hid from team trainers, in the past 14 months. The Tallahassee, Florida native is hanging up his cleats, and moving to the sidelines as he begins a career in coaching.
More from Pitt Panthers
- Pitt Basketball: Justin Champagnie Needs to Get Back on Track
- Pitt QB Kenny Pickett Must Improve in Week 14
- Pitt Exposed as a Pretender After Ugly Loss to Virginia Tech
- Pitt’s Gerald Drumgoole Jr. Is Vital to Offensive Improvement
- Pitt Must Be Careful of Potential Trap Game in Week 12
Trickett, who transfered to WVU from Florida State, completed 281 of 419 passes for 3,285 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions in 11 games this season. The Mountaineers went 7-5 overall and 5-4 in the Big 12 in the 2014 campaign.
The redshirt senior missed West Virginia’s season finale on Saturday, Nov. 29 as the Old Gold and Blue defeated the Iowa State Cyclones on the road 37-24. He was expected to be back for the team’s bowl contest, but he could not pass concussion tests from doctors at UPMC.
Looking back at his career, Trickett completed 470 of 758 passes for 5,837 yards, 32 touchdowns, and 21 interceptions. He finished with a 135.1 quarterback rating.
With Trickett out, head coach Dana Holgorsen turns to sophomore Skyler Howard to quarterback the Mountaineers against the Aggies. In the victory over Iowa State, the 6-foot, 206-pound signal caller completed 21 of 40 throws for 285 yards no interceptions, and three touchdowns. The Fort Worth, Texas native contributed 69 rushing yards on seven carries.
The AutoZone Liberty Bowl will pit WVU against the Texas A&M Aggies (7-5) at the Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tennessee on Monday, Dec. 29. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. ET and the contest will be broadcast on ESPN.