San Diego State Football lose punt returner Lloyd Mils for 2016 season

Practice for the San Diego State Aztecs has just started, but Coach Rocky Long decided Tuesday that Lloyd Mills (wide receiver/punt returner) will not play during the 2016 season. Long cites football injuries, which might be lingering health issues from 2015, and possible off-the-field injuries as factors in his decision.

Coach Long is trying to get Mills a medical redshirt, as Mills is enrolled in a master's program at SDSU. However, the writing might be on the wall for Mills to exit the program quietly, just like how he entered.

Coming out of the 2015 summer camp, Mills was listed behind sophomore Chase Favreau on the receiever depth chart. Mills did have suffer an injured groin last spring, and a sore hamstring during the summer camp, but Long cited performance issues as reasoning for the depth chart. But despite sitting behind someone, Mills retained his spot as the leading punt returner in 2015.

Lloyd Mills didn't really make an impact stat-wise during his time at SDSU. He redshirted his freshman year in 2012, suited up in 2013 to only play one game without recording a stat, and in 2014 started to see more significant playing time as a receiver and on special teams.

It's hard to argue what his impact would look like if better quarterbacks played during his time. Quinn Kaehler and Maxwell Smith were both supposed to be great quarterbacks but both came up short in their deliverables.

Mills last recorded a catch against Penn State, and his biggest contributions of the 2015 season was against South Alabama when he threw for one touchdown and returned 5 punts for 106 yards. Long's decision solidifies Chase Favreau and Mikah Holder's top spots in the roster, and leaves a lot of competition open for the rest of the Aztecs receivers.