Tardy out for season

Dwight Tardy’s career-best game was also his last this season.

The running back suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee Saturday on the final play of his 214-yard rushing day against UCLA. He will need surgery and his season is over.

The injury occurred on Tardy’s 51-yard scoring run and may have been suffered on his final cut, when he planted on the left leg and darted into the end zone.

“You know when he turned to come back off the field, he was limping a little bit,” Cougars head coach Bill Doba said. “It doesn’t take much. Maybe it was frayed before, I don’t know, but anyway they thought it was about 98 percent of it was torn and they need to repair it.”

Tardy leads the Cougars (3-5, 1-4) with 676 yards on 143 carries. He’s scored six touchdowns.

“He was disappointed, obviously,” Doba said of Tardy. “I said, ‘I’m really sorry’ and he said, ‘Hey, I’m a big boy. I’ll be back next year.’ “

The sophomore from Southern California has started every game this season after rushing for a team-high 667 yards last year. In addition to his running and receiving (15 catches for 89 yards) skills, Tardy is considered the Cougars’ best running back in pass protection.

“There’s more to it than running,” Doba said of Tardy’s importance to the team. “There’s protection and all that stuff.”

Senior Kevin McCall, who had 51 yards on 11 carries against the Bruins, will move into Tardy’s starting spot. Chris Ivory, Tardy’s usual backup, has been out with a concussion since the Arizona State game in early October and did not practice this week.

“He’s really done a nice job this year for a kid who hasn’t played a lot,” Doba said of McCall. “This year’s he’s third on the depth chart, a fifth-year senior, and he volunteers for all the special teams. Instead of pouting … he volunteers to do whatever he can to help the team.”

McCall has carried the ball 33 times for 164 yards this season. Redshirt freshman Marcus Richmond, who has nine carries, will be the backup.