Teen hospitalized following devastating football game injury

By Jonah Kaplan

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    BLOOMINGTON, Minnesota (WCCO) — It’s not just his size and strength that sets him apart; his coaches laud Ethan Glynn for his character.

“This is a captain guy,” John Frein, a baseball coach and family friend, told WCCO. “I mean you see in many pictures he’s got a C on his chest.”

The entire youth sports community in Bloomington is now rallying around Glynn after a devastating injury he sustained in a football game on Friday left him motionless on the field. According to a family spokesman, Glynn was hurt “in a normal football play” while on defense.

“It’s not just close to home. It’s here,” Frein lamented. “It’s hard. I have kids, and a lot of us have kids, and it’s something you don’t want any family to go through. He’s going to rebound from this. He’s so strong and fierce and he’s going to get through this.”

A post Monday on the website CaringBridge noted that Glynn, or “E” as he’s known to friends and teammates, remains on a ventilator but “He is now able to sit angled, which is a big win!”

In addition to football, Glynn loved playing baseball and hockey; he was the captain of the youth hockey team that went to the state championships.

“If this happened to anyone else, that family would be right there trying to help,” Sarah Doner, whose son Darin played on Glynn’s hockey team, said. “[Ethan’s mother] would be there running fundraisers because that is just who she is. Everyone wants to do that back to the family.”

As a mom of three boys herself, Doner said she doesn’t want this injury to discourage them from playing but this is still an important opportunity to “play smarter and not harder.”

“You don’t think this is going to happen to you, and you take for granted your arms and legs and being able to use them and watch your kid play. Having three kids in sports, that is your whole passion in life, and in one split moment that was changed.”

Glynn’s parents, Cassidy Durkin and Corey Glynn, shared this statement with WCCO:

“We’re so grateful for all of the support from friends and family and the community. It fills our hearts to know how many people care about Ethan. We know E is a fighter and in good hands. Thank you.”

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