UCLA Football: Tight End Suffers Scary Injury During Weekend Practice

Ricardo Sandoval | Apr 16, 2024

Dec 16, 2023; Inglewood, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins tight end Hudson Habermehl (81) reacts after catching / Kiyoshi Mio-USA TODAY Sports

Hudson Habermehl, a key player in the UCLA offense for the upcoming season, may not be able to contribute in 2024 due to a recent setback. During a practice session on Saturday, per The Los Angeles Times' Ben Bolch, the tight end reportedly suffered a major knee injury.

First-year UCLA head coach DeShaun Foster revealed today that Habermehl indeed incurred a torn ACL, who shared the update with Bolch. Bolch then relayed the news via his Twitter account, adding that defensive back Donavyn Pellot and running back Troy Leigber have also torn their ACL's.

DeShaun Foster said TE Hudson Habermehl, DB Donavyn Pellot and RB Troy Leigber had suffered torn ACLs.

— Ben Bolch (@latbbolch) April 16, 2024

Habermehl went down during practice due to a significant hit. With only a few minutes left until practice, he went down screaming in pain. Habermehl was eventually helped off the field and into the medical tent.

Before Foster knew it was a torn ACL, he spoke about the nature of getting hurt and his experience as a former player, per Bolch.

“I’ve been a player,” Foster said, “so I know how it feels when you’ve worked so hard for something and the opportunity gets taken away from you.”

The senior tight end was expected to be a starter in 2024 after recording nine catches for 148 yards and three touchdowns in 2023. Habermehl appeared in 13 games and started two games for the Bruins last season. His best game of the year came against Stanford, recording a season-high three catches for 54 yards with a long catch of 45 yards.