Mike Hollins.Photo: Ryan M. Kelly/Getty
It was an emotional and storybook return to the football field for University of Virginia’s Mike Hollins this past weekend.
Nearly half a year after surviving a shooting that killed three of his Virginia teammates, the fifth-year running back received a standing ovation from the Cavaliers crowd and later scored a touchdown during the team’s spring game, pointing to the sky after he crossed the goal line.
“It’s great to be back, it’s a blessing and I want to thank all you Hoos fans for coming out and supporting us,” Hollins said ina video messageafter the game, shared on social media via the team.
Hollins received a standing ovation from the crowd at Scott Stadium after Virginia gave him the ball on the game’s first play, according toCNN.
It was a defiant moment for the team, which canceled the remainder of its fall season after three of its members — D’Sean Perry, Devin Chandler and Lavel Davis Jr. — were killed last November duringa shooting on a busthat was returning from a class trip. Hollins and another student, Marlee Morgan, were wounded in the shooting.
Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., who was a student and former member of the Virginia football team, faces second-degree murder and other charges in the shooting, according tothe Associated Press.
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Hollins — who initially made it off the bus before running back on to help his classmates — spent several days in the intensive care unit after the shooting, according to CNN. HollinstoldGood Morning Americain December that he didn’t find out his teammates died until two days after the shooting.
“I’ve never cried like that before,” Hollins said. “I mean, I lost a brother that day. I love Lavel with all my heart, love Devin with all my heart. But D’Sean — it was different with him.”
Hollins added about Perry: “That was my brother. It was tragic hearing that he was gone.”
“His life has been impacted and changed forever, so to see his resilience every single day, and his desire to move forward with purpose, it’s been an inspiration to all the guys,” coach Tony ElliotttoldESPN. “To be able to kind of put everything in perspective and understand that yeah, we’re not moving on, but we do have to move forward — and he set the tempo and the direction in how we’re moving forward.”
source: people.com
