Stanford quarterback Josh Nunes has medically retired after suffering a debilitating injury during an offseason workout in February.
According to the Associated Press, Nunes, Stanford’s former starting quarterback, ruptured his pectoralis major tendon while doing a bench press exercise. He dropped the weights on his chest and had surgery a few days later to reattach the tendon with screws.
Nunes suffered no further injuries by dropping the weight on his chest and the ruptured pectoralis will take about 12 months to heal. He could have attempted to come back from the injury, but another injury to that area could have resulted in something catastrophic.
"The injury shouldn't have happened and we're not sure why it happened," Nunes’ father, Tim, said. "It's not something that could've been prevented. Doctors told us it's rare for quarterbacks. Just a freak accident."
This is the first freak injury Nunes suffered while at Stanford. In 2011, Nunes dropped back to pass and stepped on the foot of running back Andrew Stutz. Nunes tore the ligament under his right big toe. He spent five games in a walking boot.
Last season, Nunes finally earned the starting role and shined against USC and Arizona, but also struggled at times, which opened the door for Kevin Hogan to take the starting role.
Even if the injury hadn’t occurred, it would have been tough for Nunes to earn his way back on the field the way with the way Hogan played down the stretch.
Nunes is finishing his bachelor’s degree in management science and engineering and has already been accepted into Stanford’s social psychology program at Stanford.
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