Vanderbilt redshirt sophomore tight end Austin Monahan tore his anterior cruciate ligament in Saturday's Homecoming game and will miss the remainder of the season.
Head coach Bobby Johnson made the announcement at his weekly press conference Monday afternoon.
"That's tough," Johnson said. "Austin's had some tough luck. ACL's not that unusual but it's a tough thing to go through. We feel for him this week."
Monahan was fourth on the team with 10 receptions for 92 yards on the season. He missed the last nine games of the 2008 season with a torn scapula.
Fellow redshirt sophomore tight end Brandon Barden, who scored the team's lone touchdown in Saturday's 34-10 loss to Georgia, will be counted on to increase his production in the coming weeks.
Barden led the nation's freshmen tight ends last season in receptions with 28 and he also led the Commodores with four touchdown catches.
"We'll have to look at that and see what we can do with the position," Johnson said. "Well see what the game plan entails."
Another big loss was redshirt senior offensive tackle Thomas Welch, who exited the game Saturday with a sprained ankle and will miss this weekend's game at No. 23 South Carolina.
"A lot of teams have tough injury situations," Johnson said, "but you've got to overcome them."
