The terrifying events during “Monday Night Football” have heavily impacted the football world as the NFL prepares to play its final week of the regular season.
Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest against the Cincinnati Bengals, requiring CPR on the field before being rushed to the hospital.
Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin (3) warms up prior to the game between the Buffalo Bills and the Cincinnati Bengals on January 2, 2023, at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati, OH.
(Ian Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
While the news has been incredibly positive over the past two days – Hamlin is awake and breathing on his own – his scary injury was a sobering reminder of the dangers that the game of football presents.
DAMAR HAMLIN ASKED ABOUT BILLS’ GAME RESULT AFTER WAKING UP, DOCTORS SAY
Ahead of college football’s national championship game at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, players were asked for their thoughts on Hamlin as they prepare for a chance at the title.
“I think it makes guys want to play as hard as they can, because you never know when this game is going to be taken away,” TCU quarterback Max Duggan told Fox News Digital when asked how the injury to Hamlin impacts his mindset. “To give as much as you can to the guys that you are with, and this coaching staff, to be with them for as long as possible.”
Quarterback Max Duggan, #15 of the TCU Horned Frogs, gestures during the second half of the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl against the Michigan Wolverines at State Farm Stadium on December 31, 2022, in Glendale, Arizona.
( Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
Doctors stated that Hamlin quickly asked whether the Bills had defeated the Bengals, once he awoke earlier in the week.
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“A lot of fear, and scared in that moment for him and his family, and the guys and coaching staff that were on the field that had to experience it,” Duggan said when asked for his initial thoughts on Hamlin. “I’m glad to hear that he’s doing better, but to hear that he asked if they won, that means that in a moment where his life could have been taken away, that he was caring about his teammates, his family. He was thinking about the guys that were in the locker room.
“It was pretty remarkable to hear that.”
The Horned Frogs are preparing to take on No. 1 Georgia on Monday as massive underdogs.
Quarterback Max Duggan, #15 of the TCU Horned Frogs, warms up before the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl against the Michigan Wolverines at State Farm Stadium on December 31, 2022, in Glendale, Arizona.
(Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
The Bulldogs are looking to become the first repeat champions since Alabama did so in 2012, while TCU has gone from unranked during the preseason to being on the cusp of its first national championship since 1938.
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TCU wide receiver Quentin Johnston told Fox News Digital that his prayers are with Hamlin and his family and that Hamlin’s first words showed the love that football players have for the game.
“That just goes to show how much time and effort people put into the game of football. How much love is instilled into football,” Johnston said.
TCU Quentin Johnston (1) in action, runs with the football vs. Michigan at State Farm Stadium. Glendale, AZ.
(John W. McDonough /Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)
“Obviously thankful that he came to, but then to hear his first words were ‘Did we win?’ it just tells a lot about the love the players have for the game.”
TCU and Georgia will play for the national championship on Monday with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.
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