Pitt senior receiver Derek Kinder, a first-team All-Big East selection last season, was lost for the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt said Sunday morning.
“A very unfortunate thing for Derek,” Wannstedt said. “He’s worked so hard to put himself in position to have a great year. It was a non-contact injury. He never got hit.”
The 6-foot-1, 210-pound Kinder led the Panthers in receptions (57) and receiving yards (847) last season. He is eligible to take a redshirt this fall and return in 2008.
“That’s the bad news,” Wannstedt said. “The good news is he does have a redshirt year left, and the plan is to get it rehabbed and come back and have a great year next year. He does have all the intangibles, the work ethic and determination to make a full recovery and accomplishing everything he wants to accomplish.”
