Virginia football player Mike Hollins walking again after being shot on campus, family says
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (WAFB/Gray News) - A college football player hospitalized in the ICU for a gunshot wound is walking just days after the incident.
WAFB reports University of Virginia running back Mike Hollins is continuing his recovery after a deadly shooting occurred over the weekend.
“He’s walking,” Ebony Hollins-Allen, Mike Hollins sister, said. “With assistance and a walker, but he’s walking.”
The athlete’s sister said it is nothing short of a miracle that her brother is already on the road to recovery after grueling days in the hospital and two surgeries.
Ebony Hollins-Allen said her brother has shown resiliency, and the family is grateful for the community’s support.
“So many people are praying for my brother and for my family that it just seems like this burden isn’t as heavy as it should be,” Ebony Hollins-Allen said.
A spokesman for University Hospital said their patient was in fair condition as of Wednesday, with family members identifying the patient as Mike Hollins. He was brought into the emergency room days earlier in critical condition.
“I didn’t know what kind of condition he was going to be in; I didn’t want to see him like that. It broke my heart,” Ebony Hollins-Allen said. “I’ve seen him injured; he’s a football player. But I have never seen him in that type of condition.”
Mike Hollins was among a group of students from Virginia University returning to campus on Nov. 13 when Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., a fellow Virginia student, reportedly shot several people on a bus in a campus parking lot.
Mike Hollins and another student survived their injuries and were taken to the hospital. That other student has since been sent home.
According to UVA Athletics, the three other shooting victims all died. They were also student-athletes on the school’s football team with Mike Hollins.
“When we had to break the news [about the deaths of his teammates], Mike was devastated, as we all are. The whole nation is watching, and we’re all devastated,” Ebony Hollins-Allen said.
Doctors have not provided a timeline on when Mike Hollins could leave the hospital, but his sister said his progress is remarkable and hopes it is an indication of what’s ahead.
“Everybody is amazed at how much and how fast he is progressing. And I believe it is because he is determined,” Ebony Hollins-Allen said.
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