There’s a chance Justin Fields won’t be at full strength when No. 2 Ohio State takes on No. 3 Clemson in the College Football Playoff semifinal game at the Fiesta Bowl on Saturday.
The Buckeyes quarterback sprained his MCL in Ohio State’s win over Penn State on November 23, and he then said he aggravated it in his team’s win against Michigan the following week. Fields played through the injury in the Big Ten championship game against Wisconsin, but he’s not where he hoped to be with the College Football Playoff semifinal game just days away.
The Heisman Trophy finalist spoke to reporters Wednesday ahead of the Fiesta Bowl and said:
“My knee’s probably not like I want it to be right now. But I think with treatment every day and just resting it every day, hopefully, it will be better by the game. …
“I definitely thought I would be closer to 100 percent. If I gave a percentage, I’d probably be at 80 or 85 right now. So yeah, but I’m just going to hope and pray I feel better by game day really.”
Justin Fields says his knee isn’t exactly as healthy as he wanted it to be at this point and he’ll wear a small brace on it. pic.twitter.com/OiycoVOAxd
— Colin Hass-Hill (@chasshill) December 24, 2019
Fields said he has a smaller knee brace that he plans to wear — it’s the same one he said he wore in the Michigan game — but added that he also has a larger one just “in case anything happens” in the playoff game.
Although he said he’s been participating in the team’s bowl game practices, his mobility is limited. He continued:
“I try to get as much reps as possible. Really, I would say I haven’t really missed any reps in terms of just getting in there and playing. But I just can’t really move like I want to.”
The Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, Fields has thrown for 40 touchdowns and just one interception so far this season, and in five games, he threw four touchdowns. He has a 67.5 completion percentage (No. 16 nationally) and has thrown for 2,953 yards (No. 26) while adding 471 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground.
Evaluating the Buckeyes, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney called the two teams are “literally mirror images” of each other. The Playstation Fiesta Bowl is Saturday at 8 p.m. ET in Glendale, Arizona.
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