Wisconsin will be without its No. 1 tailback for the rest of the season, as head coach announced on Thursday morning that junior Chez Mellusi will miss the rest of the 2021 season.

Mellusi suffered what UW called a left leg injury during the third quarter of Saturday's 52-3 win over Rutgers.

"Boy, I've appreciated the way that, from really starting the process with Chez, kind of the way in the recruitment, but most when he got on campus and kind of went," Chryst said on Thursday. "I thought he gave a ton to this team, certainly in production, but a lot of other areas. Sad about that. He's competitive, and he'll come back on it."

Mellusi committed to Wisconsin in early June while on campus, and he emerged to become UW's starting tailback and a more-than-reliable presence in Gary Brown's room. He rushed for 815 yards on 4.7 yards per carry with five rushing touchdowns in nine games this season.

The 5-foot-11, 204-pound Mellusi recorded four 100-yard rushing performances this season, with a career-high 149 yards coming during the road win at Purdue.

Chryst was asked by a reporter if he had a "rough idea" for a potential timetable for Mellusi's return.

"It is probably too early for me to speak on that," Chryst said. "I think certainly, it's gonna be one of those where it won't be spring ball."

True freshman Braelon Allen has stepped up as the No. 2 tailback this season in a position group that has seen significant attrition due to either dismissal, transfer portal or injury. The 17-year-old from Fond du Lac, WI, ranks second on the team in rushing yards (661 on 7.1 yards per carry) and leads the team in rushing touchdowns (six).

Allen comes into Saturday's game against Northwestern (11 a.m. CT, ESPN2) riding a streak of five consecutive games going 100 or more yards on the ground. Behind the first-year Badger, Wisconsin's tailback roster includes redshirt junior Brady Schipper, redshirt sophomore Julius Davis and true freshmen Jackson Acker and walk-on Grover Bortolotti.

Davis ran for 32 yards on seven carries against Rutgers, showing a physicality on runs with his 5-foot-10, 201-pound frame. Schipper described to BadgerBlitz.com earlier this week that his current role was more in third-down situations with longer distances where UW mostly throws the ball. However, he also noted that it can change every week.

Acker, a true freshman from nearby Verona, Wis., carried the ball three times for 24 yards last weekend. His first career attempt went for an 18-yard touchdown in the second half against the Scarlet Knights.

Wisconsin initially listed interior offensive linemen Michael Furtney and Jack Nelson as questionable this week on its preliminary injury report. Furtney started at left guard against Iowa two weekends ago, but did not play at Rutgers. He has seen action in eight games in 2021.

Nelson has started at right guard all nine games this year, but the redshirt freshman exited late in the second quarter last weekend after trainers attended to him on the field. He did not return.

However, Chryst provided a positive update on both on Thursday morning.

"They've been able to both practice, so it's been good," Chryst said. "So both will be available."

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