It was a scene nearly exactly a year in the making, since a knee injury and cancer diagnosis winded him through the darkest stretch of his life.
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Conner missed the majority of his junior season with the Panthers thanks to an MCL tear that he suffered in the team’s season opener, but things got worse when he announced in December 2015 that he had been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
After Villanova’s 7th punt, linebacker Drew Wiley hit Peterman hard, forcing a fumble which defensive back Rob Rolle returned for the ‘Cats first and only touchdown of the game. On Pitt’s next drive Blewitt lined up for a 47 yard field goal which was blocked by Tanoh Kpassagnon, making Blewitt 0-2 on field goals.
Conner earned multiple All-America honors as a sophomore in 2014, rushing for 1,765 yards and 26 touchdowns.
His support group, dressed in bright blue t-shirts emblazoned with “Conner’s Corner” gathered in the corner of the south end zone to cheer him on. His legions of supporters made the motivation and drive easy for Conner to return for training camp and prepare for what could be his final year at Pitt. Before the clock hit zero on the half, he also hauled in a nine-yard touchdown pass. Pitt will square off with Penn State next Saturday as Conner looks to continue to knock off the understandable rust. Sep.
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Here’s the moment he led the Panthers out onto the field. He has already carried the ball 13 times during the opening half.
