The fallout from Saturday’s controversial battle between the Colorado Buffaloes and intrastate rival Colorado State continues.
The aftermath of a dirty and blatant late hit by Rams defensive back Henry Blackburn resulted in Buffs two-way star and 2022 top overall recruit Travis Hunter being injured.
Travis Hunter To Miss Biggest Games Of The Season
On Monday it was announced that the dynamic Hunter will miss at least three weeks as he recovers from a lacerated liver. Blackburn was penalized for the hit but not ejected as many believed he should’ve been.
With Hunter’s injury sure to cost him at least the next three games, fans and media everywhere have been clamoring for Blackburn to be sidelined until Hunter is healthy and back playing.
That isn’t likely to happen, and according to his head coach Jay Norvell, from his vantage point he didn’t do anything wrong.
Norvell Gives Lame Excuse For Blackburn’s Dirty Hit
The cheap shot by Blackburn was so late and egregious that even LeBron James, a former All-State receiver in high school himself, tweeted that the hit was “blatant and “uncalled for.”
But Norvell, who got the week going with an indirect shot at Coach Prime about taking off his hat and glasses when talking to grown-ups, seemed to not have much more to say when asked about the incident in his postgame presser.
“I mean, I don’t know, he hit him on the sideline. It was hard for me to see over there. I can’t answer that.”
On Monday, Norvell added more to his explanation pretty much saying it happens sometimes and they don’t teach bush league antics. In other words he considers it a bang-bang play.
Hunter will definitely miss marquee matchups versus Oregon and USC, but as Coach Prime told reporters following Saturday’s tilt, they’re going to focus on getting Travis healthy.
“First thing I’ve heard is he will be out a few weeks, but we gotta take care of him. He’ll probably want to be out two weeks, but his health is more important than the game.”
Hunter says he holds no ill will towards Blackburn, while addressing the incident during a live stream on Monday night.
“It’s football. At the end of the day stuff like that is going to happen,” Hunter said. “I just stay humble. He did what he was supposed to do. It’s football. Something bad is going to happen on the field sooner or later. We just gotta get up and fight again. That’s what I try to do. Get up and fight.
“Good thing the doctors spotted me because if there was no doctors there I would have still been out there playing. But I’m thankful for everyone who helped me out there.”
Blackburn Receives Death Threats
Per reports, Blackburn’s and his mom’s numbers, as well his family’s home address and his campus address, were leaked via the internet prior to the ending of the double overtime thriller. That led to the two receiving death threats.
CSU athletic director Joe Parker spoke with ESPN about the matter on Monday.
“We’re very concerned about our player’s safety ,as Henry and his family have continued to receive these threats,” Parker said. “Henry never intended to put anyone in harm’s way on the football field. It’s not what we teach or coach. We hope that the irrational vitriol directed at Henry stops immediately.”
Norvell seemed to piggyback his boss’s comments saying they don’t coach that type of football.
If there’s any silver lining, Hunter himself says it’s football and laying him out with a vicious hit is something he says that football players are supposed to do. So the dynamic two-way force has no hard feelings and he’s just going to stay humble.
