South Carolina football loses Mo Kaba, Nick Emmanwori to injuries vs UNC

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — South Carolina football will be without linebacker Mohamed Kaba and standout safety Nick Emmanwori for the remainder of Saturday's season opener against North Carolina.

Kaba limped off of the field midway through the first quarter and immediately went to the bench. He was visibly upset on the sideline, hunching over with his face in his hands as an athletic trainer consoled him. Kaba is recently recovered from a torn ACL suffered in Week 2 of the 2022 season, and he said he felt at approximately 85% health entering preseason. Sophomore Stone Blanton, who started, replaced him at linebacker.

Emmanwori went down with a hamstring injury on North Carolina's first play of the game and knocked over a chair with his helmet in frustration on the way to the medical tent. He spent several minutes stretching and using the stationary bike before re-entering the game, but coach Shane Beamer said on ESPN early in the second quarter that Emmanwori would sit the rest of the matchup.

Emmanwori's injury bore an uncanny similarity to former South Carolina defensive back R.J. Roderick's injury on the first drive of last year's season opener. Emmanwori, then a freshman, replaced Roderick and remained the starter for the rest of the season. Freshman Jalon Kilgore took Emmanwori's spot in the secondary Saturday.

Right tackle Cason Henry is also unlikely to return. Henry went down at the start of South Carolina's second drive in the first quarter with an apparent lower-body injury and was helped off the field limping by two athletic trainers. He was replaced by Tyshawn Wannamaker.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: South Carolina football: Mo Kaba, Nick Emmanwori injured vs. UNC