Houston DT Ed Oliver stepped on a sea urchin, then rushed for a TD anyway
From the constant head-bashing, to the dozens of bone-crushing hits, to the stop-start explosive movements, the list of injuries football players can suffer (and have suffered) is long. And thanks to Houston defensive tackle Ed Oliver, it might just have gotten a bit longer.
After Houston’s trip to the Hawaii Bowl, it’s time to add “stepped on a sea urchin” to the list.
According to ESPN’s broadcast of Sunday night’s game, and later confirmed by a team spokesman, Oliver stepped on an urchin – a spiky, hedgehog-lookalike sea creature – three days before Houston’s bowl game against Fresno State.
Oliver was reportedly in pain after the incident on Thursday. But the sophomore played through it, and not only bossed the line of scrimmage like always; he scored the first touchdown of the game as a goal-line back to give Houston a 7-0 lead:
6’3 290 All American DT with a sea urchin spine still in his foot. Ed Oliver is a freak. pic.twitter.com/1zsfQgFyTq
— The Action Network (@ActionNetworkHQ) December 25, 2017