Oliver a question mark to play again this week

Ed Oliver will not practice this week as he recovers from a knee injury, coach Major Applewhite said, but the two-time All-America defensive tackle still could play in Thursday’s final home game against Tulane.

“Ed wants to play, but you have to be cautious,” Applewhite said Monday at his weekly news conference. “What I told Ed this week was, ‘You go and get healthy.’ What we don’t need to do is take reps and then something happens in which we can’t play. Let’s just get healthy, then once we’re healthy and we feel like we can play and the doctors agree, then you can come join the team.”

Oliver, widely projected as a top-five pick in the 2019 NFL draft, has missed three consecutive games with what the school has described as a bruised right knee. He suffered the injury Oct. 20 on an illegal low block against Navy.

Applewhite said Oliver practiced “a little bit” last week before bothering his knee in warm-up drills Thursday.

Pressed whether Oliver — currently No. 2 on ESPN analyst

Mel Kiper Jr.’s Big Board of draft prospects — will play again this season, Applewhite said the final decision belongs to the star player.

“You would have to ask Ed,” Applewhite said. “I don’t know that answer.”

UH has not made Oliver available to the media since he suffered the injury.

“A lot is going through your head when all of your notoriety, all of your attention, is because your level of play,” Applewhite said. “And then you can no longer play the game that you love. It is very difficult. We see these guys make great plays on the field and we seem them as invincible, so it’s difficult.”

By Oliver not practicing, Applewhite said it allows him more time to get treatment and recover, while also allowing backups Aymiel Fleming, Blake Young and Willie Smith III to get reps during the week.

“If we are battling back and forth, let’s go with the known and let’s practice those guys and get those reps to get them prepared,” Applewhite said. “(Ed) is not going to forget how to play — I know that.”

WR Smith returns to practice field

Wide receiver Bryson Smith was back at practice Sunday night, one day after leaving with an apparent neck injury.

Smith took a hit to the head on a targeting call against Temple nickel back Sam Franklin in the closing minutes of Saturday’s 59-49 loss. The redshirt freshman had a career game, finishing with seven catches for 117 yards and three touchdowns.

Coach Major Applewhite said Smith will continue to be monitored throughout the week.

“He’s so tough,” Applewhite said. “He’s cut from the same cloth as (former UH quarterback) Greg Ward Jr. It’s going to take a lot to keep him from playing because he loves to compete.”

The school did not provide injury updates for wide receivers Courtney Lark, Keith Corbin and running backs Mulbah Car and Terence Williams.

Odds and ends

Senior cornerback Isaiah

Johnson has been selected to play in the 2019 NFLPA Collegiate Bowl on Jan. 19 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. A former wide receiver, the 6-4, 203pound Johnson made the switch to defensive back for his final two college football seasons. As a senior, Johnson leads all UH cornerbacks with 56 tackles with one interception and seven pass breakups in nine games. … The kickoff time for the Nov. 23 regular-season finale at Memphis won’t be announced until this weekend. The AAC and its television partners invoked the six-day selection for the game, which will begin at either 11 a.m., 2:30 p.m. or 3:15 p.m. on a network to be announced.