Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year JJ Weaver's Remarkable Story

For the second straight season, a Kentucky Wildcat has been named Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year. Outside linebacker JJ Weaver received the honor, along with two others, a year after offensive guard Kenneth Horsey. Weaver’s story is both heartbreaking and inspiring.

In a span of 15 months Weaver’s father was murdered, his high school football coach died of cancer and he suffered a torn ACL. In spite of all that, Weaver returned to football and played in every game of the 2021 season. He led the team in sacks (6) and interceptions (2), and recorded 34 tackles, ten for loss, four quarterback hurries and a forced fumble.

“Just one event can really cause a lot of disruption in a person’s life, and for him to go with multiple, you know, sort of stacked on top of each other,” his position coach Brad White said, almost in disbelief. “His resilience, his toughness, his grit, his ability to open up and seek help in different places and to be vulnerable shows the kind of human being he is. It shows his true toughness, his grit.”

Teammates, Hard Work and Counseling Helped Weaver

Nothing seemingly could go right for Weaver. Whenever he had doubts, his teammates were there to lift him up, just like his old Louisville Moore High School head coach Rob Reader. When he struggled to make the grades to get into UK, Reader pushed him to take the ACT five times to make sure he could reach new heights in the SEC. When Reader died of cancer in September, his football family was at his side.

“I needed them the most. I needed everybody the most. At my lowest point it felt like I had nobody, but I really did. The whole BBN, my team, everybody outside of football,” Weaver said. “I was so lost in my head, I didn’t know what to do. Going through rehab and then going to a therapist, that helped.”

There’s a stigma that comes with therapy. In the hyper-masculine world of football, it can be seen as a sign of weakness. By allowing himself to be vulnerable, he was able to overcome every single emotional setback.

“Counseling helped me keep my mind off all the negativity, keep staying positive. It happened for a reason. Everything happened for a reason. My father getting killed happened for a reason. This award goes to him, most definitely. I just kept working hard and believing in me.”

What once felt like a curse, those difficult times transformed into blessings that pushed Weaver to work harder than he’s ever worked before.

“God kept blessing me throughout all the trials and tribulations that I went through. I just want to thank the man from above,” said Weaver. “I just put the work in, I believed in myself. My teammates believed in me. You guys believed in me, so I had a lot of people behind me, following me. Just keeping my head up and working hard, that’s how I accomplished this award.”

Still Not 100%

In the middle of his best game and first career start, he suffered a torn ACL against Florida in November of 2020. At the time, many were unsure if he could play at all in 2021, including J.J.

“To be honest, I didn’t even know I was coming back as early as I did. My trainer Gabe (Amponsah) kept telling me, ‘Your time is coming, just be patient.’ Then we were limited with outside linebackers, so I had no choice but to play a lot this year. Like I keep saying, it’s God’s blessing. It’s a gift.”

Kentucky’s other Jack linebacker, Jordan Wright, missed significant chunks of time early and late in the season, forcing Weaver to carry a heavy workload. He carried it admirably, despite never playing 100% healthy.

“I’m still getting to 100%, most definitely. Rehabbing everyday, I’m still doing that. I’m still doing everything that I was doing when I was hurt: trying to get my quads stronger, trying to get my calf, my whole knee stronger to this day. I’m still working out, doing rehab right after practice along with everything else.”

Weaver’s Story Remains Unwritten

Weaver’s work is far from finished. He has big plans for his future, starting with the Citrus Bowl.

“I’m going to have to keep doing that, keep working hard. Next year’s going to be a big role for me because I’m coming back too,” Weaver said. “I’m just trying to lead my team to an SEC Championship and win this bowl game.”

Weaver can accomplish so much more at Kentucky and beyond. Aside from NFL aspirations, Brad White cannot wait to see what Weaver’s future holds. This is only the beginning.

“It’s really an amazing story. The awesome part about it too is that it’s just the beginning of the book,” said White. “You’re still only a couple of chapters in and it’s like one of those great stories that you’ve got the teaser in the beginning and you can’t wait to read the rest. Well, I can’t wait to see the rest of his book. There’s a lot of great chapters still ahead and I’m looking forward to being a part of some of them.”