Longhorns Injury Updates: Fera, Hicks, Bergeron Haven't Practiced, Will Be Evaluated This Week

Heading into the Oklahoma State game this weekend, the Texas Longhorns have some question marks surrounding the health of the team -- kicker Anthony Fera, linebacker Jordan Hicks, and running back Joe Bergeron were all injured during or prior to the Ole Miss game.

On Monday, head coach Mack Brown said that none of the three practiced last week during the bye, but did say that all three have a chance to play against the Cowboys in Stillwater. All three will be evaluated later in the week to see if they are capable of going.

Both Bergeron and Hicks are listed on the depth chart for this week, but Fera is not.

With plackicker Nick Jordan only converting on three of his seven attempts this season, getting Fera back will be a key moving forward. The groin injury for Fera was only supposed to keep the former Penn State kicker out for a maximum of six weeks, a timetable that has not been reached and surpassed. Is the team being overly cautious with him or has he suffered a setback that hasn't been made public?

The same also applies to Hicks in terms of the significance of the injury, as he is the leading tackler on the team and a player who has been responsible for making many of the defensive calls through the early part of the season.

On the other hand, the Longhorns can probably absorb the loss of Bergeron for a week or two, though any extended absence would reduce the margin to deal with other injuries, a problem during the 2011 season when Bergeron, Malcolm Brown, and Fozzy Whittaker all went down, which played a big role in the poor finish to the regular season.

Brown said Monday that the players need to start practicing by Wednesday in order to play Saturday.