CJ Baxter injury update: Thursday availability report reveals Texas RB's status for Mississippi State

Texas is set to hit the road for a fourth straight week, as Steve Sarkisian and his squad head to Starkville, Miss. The Mississippi State Bulldogs will await, hoping to spring a big upset.

The injury report will loom large for the matchup, which has Texas as a decent-sized favorite over Mississippi State. Who can play is a big deal.

The SEC has mandated teams to release availability reports throughout the week. Wednesday’s initial report gave us a good head start, while Thursday’s provided the latest info. Let’s dig in below.

Mississippi State Bulldogs

• DL Will Whitson – Out
• OL Brennan Smith – Out
• OL Blake Steen – Out
• RB Fluff Bothwell – Questionable
• LB Zakari Tillman – Out (1st half)

Texas Longhorns

• WR Aaron Butler – Out
• DB Michael Taaffe – Out
• OL Cole Hutson – Out
• RB CJ Baxter – Probable
• DB Xavier Filsaime – Probable
• LB Jonathan Cunningham – Probable

One major injury that Texas has suffered is to safety Michael Taffe. On3’s Pete Nakos broke the news of the Texas safety getting surgery on his thumb after the Kentucky win. An exact timeline on his return is not quite yet known, even being admitted as such by Sarkisian during the SEC coaches teleconference. Either way, a massive loss for the Longhorns.

Taaffe has played in all seven games this season for Texas, recording 51 tackles and one tackle for a loss. His lone interception of the year came when the Longhorns traveled down to Gainesville, a game they eventually lost to Florida.

While he is out, a few others have a more favorable diagnosis. That includes running back CJ Baxter.

Baxter was listed on Wednesday’s report for Texas as probable. So, too, was defensive back Xavier Filsaime, who is needed in the secondary with the injuries mounting.

On the Mississippi State side heading into the Texas game, three players were ruled out on Wednesday. They are defensive lineman Will Whitson and offensive linemen Brennan Smith and Blake Steen.

Meanwhile, running back Fluff Bothwell was listed as questionable on Wednesday. Linebacker Zakari Tillman must miss the first half after being called for targeting last week.

On3’s Griffin McVeigh also contributed to this report.