CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- The bruised and battered Illinois football team has lost another player to a season-ending injury and has two more who are doubtful for this week's game because of injuries suffered in the team's seventh straight loss.

Wide receiver Lonnie Hurst broke his right leg while making a catch in the second half of Saturday's 36-10 loss to Minnesota. Hurst, a freshman, started all nine games for the Illini and had 27 catches for 315 yards.

"I was talking to Lonnie in the training room (after the game) and he had tears in his eyes," linebacker Matt Sinclair said Monday. "It was tough for him."

Hurst is the fourth Illini player to go down with a season-ending injury this season, joining defensive end Mike O'Brien, guard Bryan Koch and quarterback Jon Beutjer. Fourteen Illinois players, including 10 starters, have missed a total of 61 games with injuries this season.

Hurst wasn't the only casualty Saturday. Running back Pierre Thomas, who started in place of the injured E.B. Halsey, has a leg bruise, and receiver Kelvin Hayden suffered a high ankle sprain. Both are doubtful for this week's game at Iowa, coach Ron Turner said.

Halsey sprained his right knee against Michigan on Oct. 18 and is still recovering. He will miss his second straight game this week, Turner said.

The injuries to Hurst and Hayden leave the Illini extremely thin at wide receiver. Juniors Ade Adeyamo and Mark Kornfeld will start against Iowa on Saturday, leaving sophomore Kendrick Jones and redshirt freshman Franklin Payne as the backups.

"We don't have a lot of receivers to use three receivers" on a play, Turner said. "We'll just see what our personnel is and try to do what we do."

Turner said senior Dustin Ward will make his first start of the season at quarterback on Saturday. Ward, who started five games in 2002, relieved freshman Chris Pazan in the first half against Minnesota and completed 17-of-32 passes for 221 yards.

"I think (Ward) brings a little experience, a little stability," Turner said. "Maybe it will help calm some of those guys down who have not been on the field much."

Ward said the rash of injuries will make a difficult game against 13th-ranked Iowa even tougher.

"It's going to be a tough situation," he said. "We're just going to have to do what we can with the guys we've got."

Originally published Tuesday, October 28, 2003