JoJo Earle suffered a Jones fracture in his foot in practice a couple days ago, Nick Saban told reporters on Wednesday.

The Alabama coach said an injury like that typically takes about 6-8 weeks to recover, so Saban targeted an Oct. 1 timeline for Earle to be close to coming back.

“He was doing a really, really good job, having a really good camp,” Saban said. “Probably the best he’s been on a consistent basis. Just saw a guy that grew up and was playing with a lot of confidence. So we’ll miss him for a while. But we want him to get well, and I’m sure he’ll contribute to the team at some point this year.”

Earle last season was named to the Freshman All-SEC Team by the conference coaches as a return specialist. Before Earle suffered a leg injury against New Mexico State that kept him out until the Cotton Bowl, he collected 148 yards on 12 catches with a long reception of 39. He also added 15 punt returns for 88 combined yards.

Earle was expected to be part of a receiving corps who was set to replace the likes of Jameson Williams, John Metchie and Slade Bolden. Alabama still has high-profile transfers Jermaine Burton and Tyler Harrell to shoulder most of the receiving production.