Isaac Wilson, the youngest brother of NFL quarterback Zach Wilson, did not feel well during the week leading up to Saturday’s college football game against Colorado. However, the true freshman signal-caller battled through his ailment, which was not mono, so Utah was not forced to start its fifth-string quarterback.
The Utes have been plagued by injuries all season so this most recent development is a very nice surprise ahead of a very big game.
Wilson was dealing with an undisclosed “illness” over the last few days. Rumors spread like wildfire that he got sick with mononucleosis. There is an NCAA rule that prohibits athletes from playing with mono.
As a result, Utah was preparing for the worst case scenario. Starting quarterback Cam Rising is out for the year with a lower body injury. Wilson actually began the season as the backup but he was benched in favor of Brandon Rose after poor play, which also stemmed from an underlying injury. Rose suffered a Lisfranc ligament tear and will miss the rest of the season. Fourth-string quarterback Sam Huard also had season-ending surgery earlier in the year.
With Rising, Rose and Huard out, the Utes were down to Wilson and former walk-on Luke Bottari. With Wilson trending downward throughout the week, they were down to just Bottari. Head coach Kyle Wittingham and his staff prepared to play the 18th-ranked Buffaloes with his backup to the backup to the backup of the backup. No matter how good Bottari was in junior college, that was not ideal.
However, Utah received great new on Friday!
Isaac Wilson doesn’t have mono!
Wilson’s mononucleosis test came back negative, which allowed him to travel with the team to Boulder as a game-time decision. Isaac Wilson ultimately led the Utes out of the tunnel at Folsom Field and took first-team reps during warmups.
Isaac Wilson leads C’s, RB’s onto the field. pic.twitter.com/EYDRF7nGr5
— Steve Bartle (@BartleKSLsports) November 16, 2024
All of the mono rumors were not untrue. There was legitimate concern in Salt Lake City throughout the week.
In the end, though, it is yet another example of the lore of college football. Nobody outside of the Utah program really knew anything about Wilson’s status. They didn’t know the extent of his illness. And yet, rumors ran like wildfire even though he would not have traveled with the team if he was not allowed to play.