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Wes Lunt suffers leg fracture; out 4-6 weeks

Wes Lunt suffered a leg fracture against Purdue on Saturday. He's out for 4-6 weeks.

By Jim Vainisi
Mike Granse-USA TODAY Sports

Things just keep getting worse for Illinois.  After leaving Saturday's game due to injury, the team has revealed that starting Quarterback Wes Lunt has suffered a leg fracture. He's expected to miss 4-6 weeks.

Here's the press release in its entirety:

CHAMPAIGN, IL – Illinois head football coach Tim Beckman announced Sunday that Fighting Illini quarterback Wes Lunt, who leads the Big Ten in passing yards per game, suffered a fractured fibula in the loss to Purdue Saturday and is expected to miss four to six weeks.

"I’m very disappointed for Wes, his family and the Fighting Illini family, but I know we all will respond to this situation in a positive way," Beckman said. "He’s having an outstanding season and we’re very hopeful to have him back on the field for the final three games. We are fortunate to have two bye weeks coming up so the games Wes will have to miss are as limited as possible. We have a lot of confidence in Reilly O’Toole and Aaron Bailey as we prepare for our upcoming game against Wisconsin."

Lunt is having a stellar season for the Fighting Illini. In five games, he has completed 127-of-191 passes (66.5%) for 1,569 yards, 13 touchdowns and three interceptions. Lunt currently ranks in the top-20 in the nation in completions per game (25.4, 10th), passing yards per game (313.8, 14th), passing touchdowns (13, 17th), passing yards (1,569, 18th), completion percentage (66.5, 20th) and passing efficiency (154.8, 20th), and is tied for fourth in FBS with 14 passing plays of 30+ yards.

Who will be Illinois' QB for, most likely, the remainder of the season? The two options are senior Reilly O'Toole and sophomore Aaron Bailey.  O'Toole got the starting nod against Nebraska so look for him to take the job once more. However, there's now a huge question mark for the backup spot.  Coach Beckman stated last week that Bailey will be redshirting, but this quote implies the decision may have been changed:

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