Arizona will be without another starter quarterback as the Wildcats saw their signal caller go down with an injury for the second week in a row Saturday. Gunner Cruz left UA's 34-0 loss to Colorado with a hand injury, and Jedd Fisch said after the game that he believed the injury would likely sideline Cruz for the remainder of the season.

Monday during his weekly press conference the UA head coach confirmed the team's early prognosis of the injury, and now the next step for Cruz will be to undergo surgery to repair his injured thumb.

Fisch says the injury took place a few snaps prior to an interception thrown by Cruz that was eventually returned for a touchdown. Cruz scrambled to make a play before injuring the finger on his throwing hand, but he opted not to inform the staff of his injury until after the drive came to an end.

The recovery process is expected to keep Cruz off the field for around six months marking the second season-ending injury to a quarterback in as many weeks for UA. Jordan McCloud went down against UCLA after he collapsed under a pile of players while being sacked. Ultimately, McCloud suffered season-ending injuries to his ankle and knee.

The injury to McCloud opened the door for Cruz to return to the starting role after he made two starts in the first two games of the season. He struggled in a loss to San Diego State and was eventually replaced by Will Plummer who started the third game of a season against Northern Arizona.

Plummer will now take over for Cruz as the team's starter with the second-year freshman being the only scholarship quarterback available to the team entering the second half of the season.

"It's a significant injury for a quarterback because it's on your throwing hand," Fisch said Monday. "He loves to compete in the same way Jordan was pretty broken when his injury occurred at 24-16 against UCLA. You just got hurt and you feel like, 'What does this mean? Where's my future and what's gonna happen?

"All those things, you know? A lot of emotion went through there. ... It's a substantial rehabilitation, but he'll fight back and be stronger for it. And, hopefully, have an opportunity to come back for spring football."

Fisch said Monday that walk-on quarterbacks Luke Ashworth and Brayden Zermeno will be serve as the backups to Plummer moving forward as they are the only two remaining healthy quarterbacks on the roster at this stage.

Receiver Jamarye Joiner has been seeing increased usage as a quarterback as of late. He threw the only touchdown pass in the game against UCLA on a trick play before being used to take direct snaps in the loss to Colorado. With Arizona now in a difficult spot at the quarterback position after the recent injuries to Cruz and McCloud, it is certainly possible that Joiner could see even more chances to take snaps moving forward.

For now Fisch is not fully ready to commit to that idea, but there could be more opportunities for the former quarterback who transitioned to the receiver position after his freshman season at UA.

"Clearly, we have to find ways to move the ball when we're in an interesting position at quarterback," Fisch said. "I've never personally been in a position where the depth chart is where it's at, so you have to be prepared. You have to be prepared for a what-if scenario the next time. We have six games to play and one scholarship quarterback."

"So, we need to make sure that we can get Jamarye maybe some more opportunities as well."

Fisch said the plan will be to give Joiner enough opportunities to be "serviceable" at the quarterback position should the Wildcats ever need to use him at any point this season.

Though Cruz's injury grabbed the headlines Monday, there are several other key starters who might not be able to play Friday night when the Wildcats host the Huskies. In all, six starters are either not going to be available this week or will be a game-time decision.

Fisch said running back Drake Anderson, defensive tackle Kyon Barrs and offensive linemen Josh McCauley and Josh Donovan fall into the game-time decision category with various injuries. Donovan, UA's starting right guard, did not play against Colorado because of a leg injury.

Anderson is least likely of the group to see the field Friday night as he works through a shoulder injury. The Northwestern transfer has started Arizona's last three games.

"It's hard to overcome that when you don't necessarily have all the foundation in place at this point," Fisch said about the wave of injuries. "But, I think our guys will persevere. They will battle, and they're gonna try and make the other guys around them better."

In addition to that group, defensive lineman JB Brown will not play in any other games this season but is expected to continue participating in practice. He has opted to refrain from competing in games the rest of the year because of a personal decision that will also allow him to retain a year of eligibility. Brown's decision to sit out the rest of the season was previously announced by Fisch.

The California native made three starts this season at the "anchor" position in Don Brown's defense.

Starting middle linebacker Treshaun Hayward is second on the team with 34 tackles, but he did not play against the Buffaloes because of "personal reasons." As of now, Hayward is not going to be with the team according to Fisch.

The Western Michigan transfer has started in all five games he's appeared in this season at Arizona. Bowling Green transfer Jerry Roberts replaced Hayward against the Buffaloes and finished with one tackle.

McCloud's injured ankle was surgically repaired Friday allowing the rehabilitation process to begin for the Arizona quarterback. Fisch said Monday that the knee injury McCloud suffered on the same play against UCLA will be rehabbed. Now that the operation is in the rearview mirror, McCloud has a clearer picture of his timeline for a return.

Fisch believes the injury will only keep McCloud on the shelf until January, which fits his original assessment that was made last week shortly after the injury was diagnosed.

The plan for Arizona has been to keep McCloud close to the team, and Fisch said Monday that the UA quarterback was quickly on the phone recently to rally his teammates in preparation for his return next season.

"Jordan called like eight members of the team and said, 'I can't wait for San Diego State next year,'" Fisch said. "That was his mentality. This is what happened. We can't really go back and change it, and now it's can you win the rehab? Can you win the surgery? Can you win the offseason, so when it's your time can you find yourself ready to go?"

The Wildcats host UW at 7:30 p.m. Friday night looking to end their 18-game losing streak.

> DISCUSS the article with other Arizona fans as the Wildcats continue Building The Tradition

> WATCH the latest videos from GOAZCATS.com and subscribe to our YouTube channel

> FOLLOW us on Twitter (@goazcatscom, @MattGOAZCATS, @THutch1995, @AverieKlonowski)

> FOLLOW us on Instagram (@goazcats)

> LIKE us on Facebook

> SUBSCRIBE for all the latest Arizona Wildcats team and recruiting news (subscribe now)