Hutchinson, Milton, Weaver honored for college comebacks

By RALPH D. RUSSO
AP College Football Writer

Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson, Florida State quarterback McKenzie Milton and Kentucky linebacker J.J. Weaver have won the Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year award. Hutchinson returned from a season-ending ankle injury in 2020 to become an All-American and Heisman Trophy runner-up for the Big Ten champions. A torn knee ligament cut short Weaver’s 2020 season, but his physical rehabilitation was only part of the challenge he faced. He also had to overcome the grief of losing both his father and high school coach. Milton’s comeback was more than two years in the making, after he suffered a severe leg injury in 2018 while playing for Central Florida. After missing two full seasons, he beat the odds simply by being able to walk again unassisted.