AMHERST — UMass football head coach Don Brown confirmed Monday that Minutemen starting quarterback Taisun Phommachanh will miss the remainder of the season after suffering an injury against Mississippi State on Nov. 2.

UMass had a bye this past weekend.

Brown didn’t provide specific details on the injury, but sources close to the program tell the Daily Hampshire Gazette that Phommachanh suffered a torn meniscus in one leg and is feared to have torn his ACL in the other. It’s the second consecutive year Phommachanh’s season has been cut short due to injury, and it likely marks the end of his collegiate career.

“He won’t be available to us the rest of the way,” Brown said.

The Bridgeport, Conn. native threw for 1,590 yards, eight touchdowns and six interceptions while adding 317 yards and three scores on the ground in the nine games he appeared in this fall. From what Brown has said over the past two seasons with Phommachanh leading the offense, the sixth-year senior quarterback won over the team the second he stepped foot in Amherst.

His leadership was second to none on the team, and the rest of the players always rallied around him.

That aspect will certainly be missed.

“It's a tough, tough scenario,” Brown said. “He's a great player, great leader. Teams that grow and lead from within; he's the guy that leads from within.”

Phommachanh bought into the Minutemen program from day one, and admitted that he was committed to helping UMass take a leap forward and compete at a higher level. For someone who’s poured their heart and soul into a program he didn’t even start at (Clemson and Georgia Tech his two previous stops), having Phommachanh end his career in this fashion is nothing short of upsetting, according to Brown.

“I'm a big believer that the players should set the message of the practice day every day. And he did that for us,” Brown said. “He's just a tremendous leader, great player, and a guy that you trust. And I value the word trust. So, really disappointing.”

Next up on the depth chart is true freshman AJ Hairston and freshman Ahmad Haston, both of whom appeared in the second half of UMass’ contest with Mississippi State after Phommachanh went down.

In some ways, having three games remaining – home against Liberty, at Georgia and home against UConn – to see the future of the quarterback position play out isn’t the worst thing in the world for the Minutemen. Hairston went 7-for-11 with 62 yards and a touchdown to Jakobie Keeney-James while Haston completed 80 percent (4-for-5) of his throws for 25 yards, and added 22 yards rushing.

Haston also played in three games last season, accumulating 176 yards and two touchdowns through the air – including a game-tying drive against New Mexico to send the game to overtime.

Regardless of which direction UMass goes at quarterback, Brown is confident in both youngsters.

“We’ve got a couple of young guys that have been working hard all year long, so we’ll see how that plays out on Saturday,” he said. “I thought both of them went in [against Mississippi State] and did the right stuff for the most part. Thought they handled themselves really well in a game situation.”

The consensus within the program is that Hairston is a better pure passer, and has a stronger arm that’s capable of making all the throws. Haston is more athletic, and his scrambling ability helps him make plays outside of the pocket with his arm and legs.

Brown didn’t say who he was going to start for this Saturday’s home bout with Liberty, but it’s likely both guys will see time.

“AJ is a little bigger, little taller and has a really solid throwing motion. He’s a guy we feel really, really good about, and Haston, too,” Brown said. “The bottom line is, we’ve got two guys that are both vying for playing time. And trust me, it was a good time for the bye because we were able to get those guys a significant amount of work on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday [last week]… Both guys will certainly get their work in for sure.”