South Carolina's Moore will miss '16 season with neck injury

DESTIN, Fla. (AP) South Carolina linebacker Skai Moore, the team's leading tackler the last three years, will miss the 2016 season because of a herniated disc

DESTIN, Fla. (AP) South Carolina linebacker Skai Moore, the team's leading tackler the last three years, will miss the 2016 season because of a herniated disc in his neck.

Gamecocks coach Will Muschamp made the announcement Tuesday at the Southeastern Conference's annual meetings. He said Moore will have surgery Friday in Charlotte to undergo a Level 1 fusion. Moore, a 6-foot-2, 218-pound senior from Cooper City, Florida, can't have any contact for six months after surgery.

The coach says, ''He'll be fine. This is not a career-threatening situation. This is a very common procedure for herniated disc. It's unfortunate that it didn't heal on its own.''

Muschamp says Moore, who considered turning pro after last season, will redshirt in 2016 and return to the team for one final season in 2017.

Moore sustained the injury during the 2015 season and aggravated it in the weight room before spring practice in March.

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AP college football website: www.collegefootball.ap.org