Virginia tailback Perris Jones, according to a report from Virginia Athletics, has regained movement in all of his extremities, which is great news after the harrowing helmet-to-helmet hit that he took in the third quarter of UVA’s 31-24 loss at #11 Louisville on Thursday.
The hit, on a tackle by Louisville defensive back Cam’Ron Kelly, who was briefly a member of the Virginia Football program, back in the spring, left Jones on the field motionless for several minutes as the medical and training staffs from both programs treated him.
Jones would eventually be taken by ambulance to the nearby University of Louisville Medical Center, and he will remain there overnight, according to a Virginia Athletics spokesperson.
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On the play, a second-and-27 from the Louisville 49, Virginia QB Anthony Colandrea connected with Jones on a short pass in the flat.
Jones lowered his head as he was being dragged to the ground at the Louisville 42, and Kelly, coming in from the secondary, lowered his head as he tried to participate in the tackle, and in the process made helmet-to-helmet contact with Jones.
The hit, crumpling Jones to the ground, caused a fumble that Malik Washington, trailing the play, scooped up and ran into the end zone for a Virginia touchdown.
The TD gave Virginia, a 20-point underdog, its first lead of the game, but the attention quickly turned away from the touchdown to Jones, who was not moving and in obvious distress.
“It happened, and I’m just praying for him, basically,” said Kelly, who was not flagged for the hit, after the game.
Kelly told reporters that he could tell right away that Jones was seriously hurt.
“I said my peace to him while he was on the stretcher, and nothing but love for him, and wish him a speedy recovery,” Kelly said.
Virginia coach Tony Elliott, talking with reporters after the game, credited the medical and training personnel for their quick response.
“I want to give a shout out to Louisville’s medical team. They were awesome over there on the sideline, the first ones to get to Perris, and were really, really helpful,” Elliott said. “You know, shout out to Kelli Pugh and the docs, and Ashley Murray and all those that were there quickly, thought they did an outstanding job of putting their training to work, but then also doing it in a way to comfort Perris in that in a time like that, so I’m really, really proud of our medical staff.”
As the medical and training personnel worked with Jones, the looks of concern from his teammates made you start thinking, naturally, about the date – Nov. 9, four days short of the one-year anniversary of the worst day in Virginia Football history.
Last Nov. 13, three of Jones’s teammates – Devin Chandler, Lavel Davis Jr. and D’Sean Perry – were shot and killed by a fellow UVA student as they returned from a drama class field trip.
A fourth football player, Mike Hollins, Jones’ roommate, was left with life-threatening injuries in the mass shooting, though he would miraculously survive, and return to the football field.
That’s been tough enough to have to deal with. Then the kids had to watch as their teammate lay motionless on the field, and not knowing … anything.
“Yeah, I mean, it’s a very, very difficult reality of the sport that we play, is every play can end that way, and you don’t wish that for anybody,” Elliott said. “And I know one thing, PJ is a tough young man, and he lays it on the line every time he goes out there for this football team. And you know, believing and praying that he’s going to have a full recovery, I’m putting that in the Lord’s hands. And I’m asking for that in advance, and believing that that’s gonna be the case.”
As the minutes went on for what seemed like hours with Jones not moving, the thought began to emerge – maybe they should stop play where it is, as happened last January, when Buffalo Bills defensive back Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest after making a tackle in the first quarter of a “Monday Night Football” game with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Asked after the game if the possibility of a stoppage was discussed, Elliott said “not that I’m aware of.”
“It’s like I said, it’s a tough, tough, as a football player, like, I think those that don’t that haven’t played the game, it’s hard to kind of understand it, but as a football player, man, you’ve weighed that risk, weighed that cost, right, before you ever step on the field, you know. And you don’t want to see it, you don’t want to wish it, you know, on anybody, and, like, there’s a huge risk with the sport, but the only thought for me, just in my experience, has been, you go finish, and you go find a way to try and win it for your teammate that put it on the line,” Elliott said.
“There wasn’t there wasn’t a consideration to not play,” Elliott said. “Like, that’s one of those deals, that you play through that injury. Now obviously, if it was more severe, you know, then I’m sure the officials would have called the game, but you know, for us we were gonna go try and get everything we had to finish for Perris.”
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