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Some news today out of Athens that QB JD Sprague has left the Bobcats. He was widely expected to be their starter this season.

Via @alloccOU on Twitter

The Athens Messenger reports Ohio's expected starting QB JD Sprague has left team. Now a two-way battle btw Windham and Maxwell.

Wow. Huge blow for OU. I pegged them as the most likely challenger to us in the east. Even without Sprague I'd still put them at #2 but wow. Enormous loss for the Bobcats.

Sprague had a rib removed this offseason to alleviate issues related to thoracic outlet syndrome as a result of a hit he took against Marshall last year. He obviously felt another year of football wasn't wise for his future, which is a wise decision on his part.

Jeremy Bonderman had that condition...fixing it ended his run as an effective MLB pitcher

Sprague had game...I feel for the kid.

MarkL wrote:Wow. Huge blow for OU. I pegged them as the most likely challenger to us in the east. Even without Sprague I'd still put them at #2 but wow. Enormous loss for the Bobcats.

This wasn't as big of a loss as it seems on the surface. Greg Windham was actually ahead of JD Sprague in fall camp before Sprague decided to hang them up (partly due to Sprague missing spring and still not being at 100%) but Windham was very likely going to win the #1 job anyway. He also looked excellent in their second scrimmage again today. That said, tough decision for Sprague but probably the right one to make. But mark it down, October 8 in Athens is going decide the MAC East. At the end of the season, that's gonna be the swing game and I'm betting it's the deciding game to break a tie in the standings. That game will be crucial for BG because it's also the week before playing Toledo, also on the road. If BG slips up in Athens, the Rockets could have a huge say so in whether BG gets back to Detroit. BG could survive a loss to UT, but can't afford a loss to OU and UT.