DANVILLE, Va. — A play that made headlines because of an incident with Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton and Green Bay Packers linebacker Julius Peppers, was very special for a 6-year-old Danville boy for very different reasons.
Colin Toler’s life was turned upside down on September 30, after his father passed away from a medical condition.
According to WSET, his father promised to take him to a Panthers game, but after the unexpected death, friends and family gave Colin tickets to go with his two grandfathers.
The game turned out to be a day Colin won’t soon forget.
After Cam Newton scored a second quarter touchdown, Packers linebacker Julius Peppers played keep away from Newton and threw the ball away from him as he tried to retrieve it.
Once Newton got the ball he headed right in Colin’s direction.
“I was like oh gosh, oh gosh,” Toler told WSET. “Am I going to be on the big screen or am I going to be on TV? I was jumping up and down like yeah!”
According to WSET, Newton didn’t know Colin’s backstory.
Colin’s family said the that complete strangers in the stands went out of their way to make his day special.
“The back people were like, ‘can I take your picture?’ And I was like yeah. And the side people gave me high fives and stuff, it was pretty fun,” said Colin.
