The Penn State football team suffered two big blows this week, as Curtis Drake and Pete Massaro both went down with leg injuries during spring practices. Both players were expected to be big contributors in the 2011 season.

Drake suffered a fracture to his left tibia for the second time in two years in practice last Thursday. The redshirt sophomore wide receiver was expected to play an important part in the passing game, but Drake will miss the rest of spring practice and his status for the 2011 season is questionable.

Just a day after Drake’s injury, Massaro was hurt during practice. His MRI on Saturday confirmed that he tore his ACL in his left knee. The injury comes as a blow to Massaro, who came back from a right ACL tear last year to start as a defensive end. Massaro will miss the entire 2011 season and undergo nine months of rehabilitation.

Penn State will miss Drake (if he is unable to play) and Massaro next season. Both were expected to be big contributors on the field in 2011. With Blue and White weekend just around the corner, the Nittany Lions will hope to make it through the next couple of weeks unscathed.