Northeastern's Quincy Ford To Undergo Back Surgery, Miss Season

BOSTON — The Northeastern Huskies announced Wednesday evening that preseason All-CAA second team selection and junior forward Quincy Ford will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing back surgery later this week. Ford had missed Northeastern’s previous six games after averaging 8.5 points and 2.0 rebounds during the team’s first two match ups.

"Quincy is just a big, big part of our program," head coach Bill Coen said following Northeastern’s 72-64 loss to Harvard on Wednesday. "Everybody that has come out and seen us play over the last couple of years knows what type of talent he is, what type of kid he is and how much he means to this program. We want to support him and make sure his health is our utmost concern."

Ford battled the nagging injury throughout the second half of the 2012-13 season in which he earned All-CAA third team honors after averaging 12.2 points and 5.8 rebounds per game on the CAA regular season champion Huskies. Ford and Coen had previously told Mid Major Madness that the St. Petersburg, Fla. native had rehabbed tirelessly over the summer, however that process has proved unsuccessful.

"We want to make sure he’s healthy first and gets the proper medical treatment," Coen added. "All of our guys in the locker room are behind him, all our coaches are behind him and Quincy’s going to dedicate himself to coming back better than ever."

Northeastern did not officially announce if Ford is red-shirting, although it is probable, but that he will be expected to return to Matthews Arena for the start of the 2014-15 season. Ford was expected to be the new face of the Northeastern program after the Huskies graduated senior guards and 1,000-point scorers Joel Smith and Jonathan Lee in the spring.

Essentially, the 2-6 Huskies are now down three starters and all-conference players from last year’s successful squad that went 20-13.

This fall, Northeastern plastered a 35-foot photo of Ford driving to the basket as the featured image in a collage on the Forsyth Street side of the school’s practice facility, the Cabot Center. Looking on the bright side, the injury ensures Ford to be the face of the program for an extra season than previously expected.