Michigan mother Courtney Mims watched from the sidelines as her son, Colton, had his spine fractured after a much bigger opponent jumped on top of him during his junior varsity football game last week.
Mims spoke with a local TV station to reflect on the horrifying experience.
“As soon as it clicked that it was [my son], I couldn’t be stopped. I had to go down there. I’ve never felt anything like it. I’ve never been as upset or shaken up as I was over something for my son,” she told WSBT.
A 15-year-old at Lake Shore High School, Colton was overpowered in a third-quarter blocking battle against a player with a substantial size advantage from Kalamazoo Central High School.
Colton was still on the ground when his opponent jumped in the air and belly flopped on top of him.
Mims was taken to the hospital, where he was diagnosed with two spinal fractures — ending his season.
His mother revealed that Colton was released from the hospital and is back at home. He’s expected to make a full recovery, but it’s uncertain if he’ll be able to play football again.
“These boys are high school boys,” his mother said. “They’re 15 years old. The game means a lot to them. It’s their whole life right now.
“They’re there from before I get up to go to work in the morning till after dinner, putting in the work and for somebody to try to take that from somebody doing so much is awful for me to see.”
Kalamazoo Central has since taken “strong and decisive action” against their player, though he has not been identified.
Other members of the team reached out to Courtney in an effort to apologize — a heartwarming gesture she revealed in a follow-up post to Facebook, which thanked the community at large for its support.
“This truly brought me to tears,” she wrote, “and has helped remind me that one player’s actions does not in fact, reflect an entire team, & hasn’t; in all regards.
“We stand with the right side, and are so thankful to everyone in this community and extending that are behind us; and continue to share the story.”
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
