Career of Louisville's Whitehead over after diagnosis of spinal condition

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Louisville defensive end Deantwan "Peanut" Whitehead's football career has ended due to a spinal condition that showed up after an injury in last week's loss to West Virginia.

Whitehead was diagnosed Thursday with congenital cervical spinal stenosis after seeing a specialist in Indianapolis, the school said. He was injured on a tackle early in the 38-31 loss to West Virginia on Nov. 8.

The condition is a narrowing of the spinal column around the spinal cord, the same problem that ended the career of teammate Mike Donoghue, an offensive lineman, last month.

Whitehead, a 6-foot-6, 250-pounder from Birmingham, Ala., had 25 tackles and two sacks in nine games for the Cardinals this season. He played in all 13 games as a true freshman last season and recorded 16 tackles and four sacks.