Miss. State QB Taylor needs surgery, to miss rest of season

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Mississippi State quarterback Kamario Taylor, the college football season's breakout star, is facing season-ending surgery on his injured toe, sources told ESPN's Pete Thamel.

He will miss the rest of the season and is expected to make a full recovery, sources told ESPN. Taylor has an appointment Tuesday to get his toe checked out by a specialist and could have surgery as early as Wednesday, sources told ESPN.

Taylor injured the toe against Missouri on Sept. 26. He attempted to play in two subsequent games - Alabama on Oct. 3 and Oklahoma on Saturday. (He missed the game at LSU on Oct. 17.) He clearly wasn't 100% in both of the games he played after the injury and left both early.

Taylor pushed hard to play after the injury, sources told ESPN, but it became clear that time and rest weren't going to get to him to a point where he could be effective. He appeared to re-aggravate the toe in the first quarter of the Oklahoma game, limped to the injury tent and did not return.

Taylor, a true sophomore, surged into the mainstream of college football early this season by leading Mississippi State to a 4-0 start, which included wins at Minnesota, at South Carolina and at home against No. 19 Missouri.

He finishes the year with 17 passing touchdowns, 1,460 passing yards and completing more than 65% of his passes. At 6-foot-4 and 230 pounds, he established himself as one of the country's most dominant and dangerous players.

Taylor, a second-year player, has already emerged as one of the most intriguing players for the 2028 NFL draft following next year. It wouldn't be a surprise if he projects as the top pick for the 2028 NFL draft, the first one he'll be eligible for.