NASHVILLE - Vanderbilt football will be missing a few players this weekend against NC State
, including one player who will be out for the rest of the season.
Before getting to the quarterback news of the day, Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea began his weekly Tuesday press conference announcing injury updates. The first injury Lea announced was a season-ending ACL injury to defensive lineman Aaron Bryant
.
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Bryant
sustained his ACL injury in Vanderbilt's 35-26 win over Delaware
Saturday and will have knee surgery that will keep him out for the rest of the 2026 season. Bryant was a depth piece on Vanderbilt's defensive line. During the 2025 season, Bryant appeared in 11 of Vanderbilt's 13 games and had three total tackles, one was a tackle for loss. Through two games this season, Bryant saw time on the field in both games before he ultimately got injured against Delaware.
"I am just so heartbroken for him. He has worked so hard and was having a great start to the season. He will be missed. Obviously, we're in full support of him in his recovery. But unfortunately, he won't be with us this fall on the field," Lea said.
Vanderbilt will also be without another player this weekend, tight end Cole Spence. Spence has missed both games to start the 2026 injury with a lower body injury. Lea initially listed Spence as "week-to-week" last week and that sentiment continued in Tuesday's press conference.
Though he will be out, Lea still continued to express his positive feelings on the progress Spence has made in his recovery.
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"He's still week-to-week, not going to be with us this week. But if he continues to move forward the way he has, there's a chance that he could be available for something against Auburn. So, I'm really hopeful for that. And again, all that's contingent on his continued development. But we've seen really positive signs," Lea said.
In other Vanderbilt injury news, Lea said that both linebacker Jamison Curtis and cornerback Jaylin Lackey are out with soft tissue injuries. Though Lea does not know how long Curtis will be out for, he labeled him "week-to-week."
The same listing goes for Lackey. Lackey missed Saturday's game against Delaware with his soft tissue injury and will be out again this weekend.
"I think I mentioned last week, soft tissue, persistent hamstring that I just don't - this is going to take a little time. So even week-to-week on him, but he won't be available this weekend," Lea said on Lackey.
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Lastly, Vanderbilt EDGE Brian Allen Jr. did not practice today with an ankle injury. However, Lea said his status is trending in the right direction.
Vanderbilt takes NC State Saturday in its final nonconference game of the season Saturday. The Commodores take on the Wolfpack at 11:45 a.m. CT on SEC Network.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/vanderbilt as Vanderbilt Football Injury Report: One Player Suffers Season-Ending Injury, Others to Miss Game Against NC State
.
