After news that Colorado State football player Henry Blackburn received death threats after his hit on Travis Hunter, both Hunter and Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders came out and defended Blackburn.
Despite how some fans feel, there are no hard feelings toward Blackburn.
“Henry Blackburn is a good player who played a phenomenal game,” Sanders said. “He does not deserve a death threat over a game.”
Sanders also said that he and Hunter have forgiven him too.
In fact, Hunter said what Blackburn did was a football move.
“It’s football at the end of the day,” the 20-year-old said about the play on Monday. “Stuff like that gonna happen. He did what he was supposed to do. It’s football,” he said.
The hit jarred Hunter and sent him out of the game. Doctors diagnosed him with a lacerated liver, an injury that will sideline him for several weeks. That may explain why some fans are angry, though resorting to that level is uncalled for. Hunter seems to be taking it all in stride.
“Just gotta get up and fight again — that’s what I tried to do,” Hunter said. “Good thing the doctors stopped me because if there was no doctors there, I’d still be out there playing.”
Let’s hope that both Travis Hunter and Deion Sanders’ words will calm the flames of the ugliness that has been fired up since Saturday on social media with some out-of-control fans.
About Stacey Mickles
Stacey is a 1995 graduate of the University of Alabama who has previously worked for other publications such as Sportskeeda and Saturday Down South.