Wisconsin cruised past Purdue for a 38-17 victory in Week 4, pushing their record on the season to 3-1. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like they managed to escape this victory unscathed, as one of their top running backs in Chez Mellusi was forced out of the game early with a knee injury and ultimately never returned. As it turns out, the update on Mellusi's injury isn't particularly great.

Mellusi had been on fire to start the season in the Badgers crowded backfield, and he was clearly one of Wisconsin's top weapons on offense. Unfortunately, reports have come out indicating that Mellusi suffered a fractured fibula against Purdue, and the injury will hold him out for the rest of the 2023 campaign, which is a crushing blow for Wisconsin.

Via Adam Rittenberg:

“Sources: Wisconsin running back Chez Mellusi suffered a fractured fibula in Friday's win against Purdue and is expected to miss the rest of the season. Mellusi had 307 rushing yards and 4 touchdowns before the injury.”

Mellusi had some explosive outings to begin the year, such as his 157-yard, two touchdown performance to begin the season against Buffalo, but they will now be forced to replace his presence in the backfield. Braelon Allen has looked great to start the season as well, but you never want to lose talented playmakers for an extended period of time.

With Mellusi's season over, Allen is going to become the true leader of the Badgers backfield, with Tanner Mordecai chipping in behind him like he did on Saturday against Purdue. Losing Mellusi is a terrible outcome for Wisconsin, and it will be worth keeping an eye on their backfield to see how they end up performing throughout the rest of the season.