Iowa State QB Park takes leave from team for medical reasons

Iowa State quarterback Jacob Park will not play against No. 3 Oklahoma on Saturday and is taking a leave from the team for undisclosed medical reasons.

The school announced Friday that Park will go on leave while working through personal health issues, but he remains a member of the squad. Iowa State coach Matt Campbell said in a statement that he is not sure when Park will return, and he cannot discuss specifics.

“Jacob is a great young man dealing with some personal medical concerns,” Campbell said. “We are committed to helping him cope, supporting him on all levels and helping him prepare to get back on the playing field with his teammates as soon as possible.”

Park has completed 62 percent of his passes and has nine touchdown passes and five interceptions this season. He is averaging 295.2 yards passing (15th in NCAA) and 25 completions per game (12th).

For now, the bigger concern is Park’s well-being.

“We are focused on helping Jacob in any way we can,” Campbell said. “I know how important the football team is to Jacob and how important Jacob is to the football team. But, supporting one another in difficult times is where our focus is.”

Freshman Zeb Noland was Iowa State’s No. 2 quarterback on the depth chart this week, and senior Kyle Kempt was third. Noland has thrown one pass this season, and Kempt hasn’t thrown any.

The most experienced quarterback on the team, Joel Lanning, has switched to inside linebacker and ranks second in the Big 12 and fifth nationally in tackles per game. He has 14 career starts at quarterback. Last season, he completed 99 of 170 passes for 1,290 yards with nine touchdowns and just three interceptions.

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Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/CliffBruntAP .

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