Mark Schlabach November 11, 2023, 11:27 am ET3 minutes read
Virginia RB Perris Jones was sent off after a big hit
Perris Jones is carted off the field after a Virginia touchdown in the third quarter against Louisville.
In one Bank statement sent to XThe school said the surgery was successful and that Jones was able to walk briefly Saturday morning.
Virginia said Jones remains under observation and will be transferred to Frazier Rehabilitation Institute in Louisville for further treatment when his medical team deems it appropriate. A Virginia official previously disclosed that Jones experienced movement in all of his extremities.
Virginia RB Perris Jones underwent spinal surgery after being injured in the third quarter against Louisville on Thursday. He will remain in hospital for observation.Andy Lyons/Getty Images
Jones, a senior from Alexandria, Virginia, was injured after catching a pass late in the third quarter on Thursday night. He fumbled the play and fell forward in a heap of several Louisville players. With the game taking place near the Louisville sideline, Cardinals coaches immediately rushed over to help. Cavaliers wide receiver Malik Washington picked up the fumble and scored a touchdown.
The Virginia players, some crying, knelt as they watched in stunned silence. Jones is roommates with fellow running back Mike Hollins, who survived a shooting that killed three of his teammates last November. Monday marks the one-year anniversary of the deaths of Devin Chandler, Lavel Davis Jr. and D’Sean Perry.
Jones was eventually placed on a cart, completely immobilized. Hollins, who has Perry’s No. 41 on the white band he wears on the back of his arms, was among the players who came closest to the cart before it drove off.
“It’s a very, very difficult reality of the sport we play that any game can end like that, and you don’t wish that on anyone,” Virginia coach Tony Elliott said after the game. “Man, I know one thing: [Jones] is a tough young man and he puts everything on the line every time he plays for this football team. [We’re] I believe and pray that he will make a full recovery. I put this in the hands of the Lord, and I ask in advance and believe that it will be the case.”
ESPN’s Andrea Adelson contributed to this report.