Colorado's 43-35 double-overtime win over rival Colorado State in Week 3 was one of the wildest games of the season, but it included a devastating internal injury to Buffaloes wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter that could keep the two-way star out for several weeks. Rams defensive back Henry Blackburn was penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct for the late hit on Hunter towards the end of the first quarter. Hunter returned to play in the second quarter, but was taken to the hospital in the second half.
But there isn't any lingering animosity between Hunter and Blackburn. The two players have reconciled in person and Hunter posted a nearly 20-minute long video on his YouTube channel that shows the two players not only discussing the incident, but getting to know each other on a more personal level.
"Football is just a game at the end of the day," Hunter said in the video. "We are the people who play it, and we are going to get hurt eventually. You just can't look at it as a negative. It's something good coming out of it ... like right now. This video is something good. Us coming together is something good that came out of that injury or that football game."
Blackburn said "you know that I never meant to hurt you," and complimented the way that Hunter has handled the incident.
"Something bad is going to happen [on the football field]," Hunter said. "When it happened, I was like 'it's not his fault'. It's football. Something's gonna happen. You just gotta get up and be ready to do it again. Just like if you jam your finger. What are you going to do? You're going to get up and be ready to go out there and do it again."
After the conversation, the two players went bowling for charity. Each put up $1,000 of their own money, and the winner of the match would donate the funds to a charity of his own choice. Hunter won the contest, but deferred to Blackburn to choose the organization. He decided on Realities for Children, an organization that supports the lives of children who are abused, neglected, abandoned or are at-risk. The charity has offices near both schools.
Colorado coach Deion Sanders offered forgiveness to Blackburn last week after Colorado State University police reported death threats towards the player for the hit, which was considered a cheap shot. Blackburn was not disqualified from the game.
"I forgive him. Our team forgives him. Travis ... he's forgiven him. Let's move on. That kid does not deserve that," Sanders said. "Henry Blackburn is a good player who played a phenomenal game. He made a tremendous hit on Travis on the sideline. You can call it 'dirty,' you can call it 'he's just playing the game of football'. But whatever it was, he should not be receiving death threats.
"At the end of the day, this is a game," Sanders continued. "Somebody must win. Somebody must lose. Everybody continues their life the next day. It's very unfortunate. I'm saddened if there's any of our fans that's on the other side of those threats. I would hope and pray not. But that kid was just playing to the best of his abilities, and he made a mistake."
Hunter will likely miss his second straight game when the Buffaloes host No. 8 USC on Saturday in Boulder, Colorado.
