Paralyzed Bloomington football player's first words off ventilator: 'Roll tide'

Bloomington Jefferson football community shows support for injured player

It was an emotional night for players with Bloomington's Jefferson Jaguars as the team took the field for the first time since a teammate suffered a terrible injury during last week's game.

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (FOX 9) - The family of Ethan Glynn says the young high school football player, who was paralyzed during a game nearly two weeks ago, reached a major milestone as he marches towards recovery.

In an update on CaringBridge, Ethan Glynn's family wrote Monday that he "continues to amaze everyone with his grit and determination." The family says Ethan is now off his ventilator, adding that the first words out of his mouth were "roll tide" – the rallying cry for the Alabama Crimson Tide. Over the weekend, the family says Ethan was also able to watch the Alabama football game with his family from his hospital bed.

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Glynn was left paralyzed from the shoulders down after a tackle on September 2 during the season opener for the Jefferson Jaguars football team. After the game, the Glynn family said Ethan had suffered severe injuries to his neck and spinal cord.

We're told Glynn is a standoff athlete and, aside from football, is also active in hockey and baseball.

An online fundraiser to support the Glynn family has raised nearly $150,000 as of Tuesday.