Clemson QB Kelly Bryant in walking boot after win over Wake Forest

Clemson quarterback Kelly Bryant was in a walking boot after injuring his ankle in the third quarter of the Tigers’ 28-14 win against Wake Forest on Saturday.

Bryant rolled his ankle while being tackled at the 1-yard line. He stayed in for one more play, a Travis Etienne touchdown run, but did not return to the game for the final 22 minutes.

The junior tested the ankle on the sideline but was not moving well.

“I just got hit high and got hit low and rolled my ankle. I’m just going to be in treatment all week recovering from it,” Bryant said. “I didn’t want to force it and make it worse than what it was. We tried on the sideline running on it, and it just wasn’t feeling too good. I didn’t want to rush it and try to get back out there and hurt myself even more.”

Bryant was 21-for-29 passing for 200 yards with a touchdown and an interception before leaving the game. He also rushed for 39 yards.

Clemson coach Dabo Swinney is hopeful Bryant will be able to play against Syracuse on Friday.

“We’ll see tomorrow where it is,” Swinney said. “Did not appear to be too serious, but you never know how those things are going to heal.”

Backups Zerrick Cooper and Hunter Johnson got opportunities after Bryant left the game.

Cooper was 2-for-6 passing for 16 yards, while Hunter Johnson was 5-for-5 passing for 42 yards and a score.

Swinney said the two will split reps evenly this week in practice if Bryant is unable to go.

“Kelly gets all the first-team reps, and then we’ve been splitting them between Zerrick and Hunter anyway,” Swinney said. “We’ve been repping three quarterbacks all fall. We’ll see how it goes.”

This story was originally published October 7, 2017 at 6:48 PM with the headline "Clemson QB Kelly Bryant in walking boot after win over Wake Forest."