WRAL Sports Fan

North Carolina

UNC quarterback T.J. Yates out six weeks with sprained thumb

By Ryan Craig

Apr 25, 2009

North Carolina starting quarterback T.J. Yates has a sprained thumb on his throwing hand, and won't be able to toss a football for six weeks.

According to Kevin Best, UNC's director of football communications, Yates' finger will be in a splint for the time being.

The 6-foot-3 signal-caller suffered the injury while playing frisbee during a recent team picnic.

If all goes according to plan with treatment and rehab, the six-week timeframe would place Yates back on the field well before the beginning of fall practice.

This isn't the first time Carolina's starting QB has dealt with an injury.

Yates missed all of spring practice in 2008 after shoulder surgery, and sat out six full games and most of two others last season after suffering a broken ankle against Virginia Tech in late September.

Despite missing all that time, Yates still threw for more than 1,000 yards on 81-135 passing with 11 touchdowns and only four interceptions.

Cam Sexton filled in admirably for the Heels when their starter went down, completing 94 of 168 pass attempts for 1261 yards and nine touchdowns with only six picks.

Should Yates' injury keep him out longer than expected, the Heels depth at the position will be tested.

After being told he would not be the team's starter heading into spring practice, Sexton decided to transfer to Catawba College to play out his remaining year of eligibility. Sexton will graduate from Carolina in May with a degree in communications.

With Sexton out of the fold, Mike Paulus, the brother of former Duke point guard Greg Paulus, would be next in line to take the snaps under center according to the team's spring depth chart.

Paulus was not impressive in his only action last year, completing only four of 13 passes for 33 yards and a pair of interceptions with no touchdowns.

Braden Hanson, a 6-6 redshirt freshman, enters the spring as the third quarterback.

Bryn Renner and Donovan Tate, two true freshman out of West Springfield, Va. and Cartersville, Ga., respectively, are also listed on the roster as quarterbacks.