Ole Miss LB C.J. Johnson will miss 4-6 weeks with a torn meniscus

Screw it, let's just keep piling up the bad news. Starting Ole Miss middle linebacker C.J. Johnson put up a Facebook post on Tuesday morning saying that he's going to have surgery.

UPDATE: Johnson has a torn meniscus and is expected to miss 4-6 weeks, according to Patrick Ochs of the Sun Herald. If you recall, that's the same injury that has Tony Conner riding the bench for at least another couple of weeks.

Back when the Conner news broke, we talked to a physical therapist, who explained that recovery time for a meniscus injury can vary between two and six weeks depending on the severity of the tear. The doctors won't know anything for certain until they open it up and get a good look during surgery.

Four weeks means Johnson misses SEC games against Texas A&M and Auburn and returns for LSU. Six weeks means he wouldn't see the field until the regular-season finale in Starkville.

Here's what Johnson's post said:

The best thing I love about playing sports is that it challenges you guts and determination. When the game knocked you down you get up and keep fighting. Thank you to all of my family and friends who has prayed for me through this difficult time. Hopefully my surgery will go well and I'll be able to be back with my brothers soon. Thank you for all your support Rebel Nation.

If whatever this injury is happened during the Florida game, it would help explain why we saw so many backup linebackers on the field (Temario Strong was on the field for the Gators' second touchdown, for God's sake).

So if you've been following along at home, Ole Miss' defense is now

• without star defensive tackle Issac Gross for the rest of the season,
• without Tony Conner, one of the best defensive backs in the country, for at least two more games,
• on the verge of having cornerback Tee Shepard quit the team
• and missing its starting middle linebacker for at least a month.

Injury and attrition derailed the Rebs' 7-0 start in 2014. It looks like it's going to do the same thing for another dream season in 2015.

We'll update y'all when we get more info on Johnson's injury.