More Aggies injuries could mean time for walk-on

Last month, I wrote about Connor Garner, who walked on to the Utah State basketball team in the fall. He's been suiting up, but remaining on the bench.

Now might be the time he actually sees the floor.

Stew Morrill acknowledged the possibility on Tuesday, saying Garner was really the only other option for the team outside of the eight guys who have already played minutes. The 6-foot-2 guard might be an emergency valve for when the team gets caught in serious foul trouble.

"He's the only guy we have available," Morrill said. "It might come to that. We've got a season to finish."

When I wrote on the blog yesterday that small forward Quinn Taylor was a possibility, I overlooked the fact that he received academic aid prior to his LDS Church mission. That means he's not allowed to play in his first season, otherwise the Aggies might have used him.

Utah State has another walk-on who joined the team at midseason, but he's not ready to go, Morrill said.

That leaves Garner, a freshman who is coming off a mission himself. But it he might still only see the court sparingly.

It's still up to the top 8 to win games.

— Kyle Goon

kgoon@sltrib.com

Twitter: @kylegoon