VERMILLION — The University of South Dakota football team received troubling injury news Thursday morning with junior captain running back Charles Pierre Jr. announcing via social media that he will be out for the remainder of the 2025 season.
Pierre Jr. announced the news through Instagram, stating that he will miss 10-12 months after suffering a knee injury in the Coyotes’ game at Lamar on Sept. 6.
His final play of the 2025 season came at the end of the second quarter at Lamar with under 30 seconds left, with Pierre falling awkwardly as he ran toward the goal line and lost a fumble. He did not return to the game.
Earlier in the week, USD coach Travis Johansen said he was optimistic that Pierre would return for the Coyotes soon, calling the decision to take him out against Lamar as precautionary.
Marcus Traxler / Mitchell Republic
Pierre was named the top returning running back in the FCS by Herosports.com in the preseason and was tabbed to the preseason Walter Payton Award watch list which features the top offensive players from the FCS.
Through two weeks, Pierre led the team in rushing with 102 yards on 23 carries (4.4 yards per carry). Pierre posted a team-high 1,244 rushing yards — which led the Missouri Valley Football Conference in 2024 — on 167 carries with 16 rushing touchdowns a season ago.
Now, the Coyotes will pivot to the second-leading rusher in sophomore L.J. Phillips Jr. who has 77 rushing yards on 18 carries thus far with freshman Texas transfer Reid Watkins tabbed as the backup.
Trey Houchin is a sports reporter for the Mitchell Republic. Trey graduated from Northwest Missouri State University in 2025 with a bachelor’s degree in sports media and covers a wide variety of topics. A Missouri native, Houchin can be reached at [email protected].
