When Jontay Porter suffered a torn ACL and MCL during a so-called “secret scrimmage” at Southern Illinois-Carbondale in October and was lost for the season, the cruel twist provided yet more fodder for a fan base whose paranoia justifiably runs deep.
That mentality prevailed well before the development last year that this virtually paralleled: older brother Michael Porter Jr., the would-be redeemer of the program, crumpling with a back injury minutes into the opener that sidelined him almost all season and figured to sabotage MU’s hopes.
Fans, of course, can’t help but see patterns in such devastating matters as abruptly losing your best player.