Louisville will be without DeVante Parker for six to eight weeks following the wide receiver's left foot injury suffered during Friday's practice, coach Bobby Petrino announced Monday.
Petrino said Parker broke the fifth metatarsal and will undergo surgery later Monday.
Parker, his family and Louisville's medical staff flew to Charlotte, North Carolina, for the evaluation, with Petrino saying the doctor Parker sees, Dr. Bob Anderson, will be the same one who is with him when he goes through his medical history at next winter's NFL scouting combine.
"He's such a calm guy, you wouldn't know that it really bothers him that much, and obviously it does," Petrino said of Parker. "He's a great competitor and a great player. He took it better than I probably did."
The 6-foot-3 Parker, a Louisville native, returned to the Cardinals following a junior season in which he had 55 receptions for 885 yards and a school-record 12 touchdown catches.
Parker is ESPN Insider Mel Kiper Jr.'s No. 3 senior receiver in his 2015 draft prospects.
Parker's injury deals a big blow to Louisville's offense as it enters the Atlantic Coast Conference against a Hurricanes squad it throttled 36-9 in the Russell Athletic Bowl last December. The Louisville native had nine catches for 142 yards and a touchdown against Miami last season.
While the Cardinals must do without their speedy deep threat, Petrino noted they have plenty of experienced receivers to contribute in his absence.
Besides reliable senior Eli Rogers, who finished third with 44 receptions for 536 yards, Louisville returns speedy senior Kai De La Cruz and tight end Gerald Christian (28 catches, 426 yards, 4 TDs). The Cardinals also have seniors Michaelee Harris and Matt Milton and promising sophomore James Quick.
Petrino said that all of them must contribute with Parker out for a while and with Louisville breaking new sophomore QB Will Gardner.
"We're fortunate that we have a lot of experienced players," Petrino added. "You're never going to replace a guy like Devante with just one guy. You've got to do it collectively with all the weapons that we have, stepping up and making more plays."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.