Latest injury needs to be wake-up call for Texas QB

An upbeat start to the Charlie Strong era at Texas took an ominous U-turn Monday with the announcement that quarterback David Ash has suffered his third concussion in the past three football games he has played.

Strong, Texas’ first-year coach, said Ash will miss Saturday’s game in Austin against Brigham Young (6:30 p.m., FS1) after reporting concussion-related symptoms to trainers following the team’s 38-7 victory over North Texas. If Ash was my son, I’d urge him to call it a career. Three games, three concussions and you’re out.

During fall drills, Ash made it clear that he wanted to return and lead the Longhorns (1-0) this season. He lobbied for the opportunity and did the rehabilitation work. But late Saturday night, Ash called Texas trainers after leaving the stadium to report headaches and dizziness.

Ash did not complain of those symptoms during the game, Texas officials said. But they’re all too familiar in relation to Ash, who suffered his first concussion in last year’s loss to BYU, then suffered a season-ending concussion two weeks later in a 31-21 victory over Kansas State.

The UNT game marked Ash’s first football-related contact since the K-State game on Sept. 21, 2013. For the sake of Ash’s long-term health, it needs to be his last. The final decision belongs to Ash and his family but the track record is pretty clear at this point.

During Monday’s news conference in Austin, Strong set no timetable for Ash’s return and turned the focus toward preparing sophomore quarterback Tyrone Swoopes, a 38.3 percent passer last season (5-of-13, 26 yards), to face BYU.

Strong also made it clear where he stands on the bottom-line issue that should be first and foremost in the minds of all who are close to Ash.

“We would never jeopardize a young man’s health for the good of the football team,” Strong said.

Asked about moving forward with two inexperienced quarterbacks atop the Texas depth chart, Strong said: “We can function. It’s not the end of the world. Someone else has to step up. That’s the situation we’re in right now.”

Without Ash, a junior who has a 15-7 career mark as Texas’ starting quarterback, the Longhorns drop from a borderline Top 25 team to one that might struggle to become bowl-eligible. Games against BYU (1-0), No. 7 UCLA (1-0), No. 10 Baylor (1-0) and No. 4 Oklahoma (1-0) are on the docket between now and Oct. 11.

During the second half of the season, the schedule is friendlier for a young QB learning on the fly, whether it is Swoopes or Jerrod Heard, a freshman from Denton Guyer. Texas players vowed Monday to rally around whoever plays quarterback.

But it’s hard to envision Ash returning to that equation after Monday’s news. Three concussions in three games should mean he’s out.

In other notable happenings from college football’s extended opening weekend, here are some knee-jerk conclusions worth embracing:

This story was originally published September 1, 2014 at 8:07 PM with the headline "Latest injury needs to be wake-up call for Texas QB."