Credit: Twitter capture, @malichiobrien
A unusual thing took place at college football games this season, which was noticed by many people. There have been an unusual number of players testifying of their faith in Jesus before or after games, Tré Goin-Philips reports in his article for CBN.
Former NFL player, Derwin Gray, pointed this out on X when he responded to Texas running back, Nick Sanders asking to pray with Arizona RB, Cam Skattebo after the Peach bowl game, which Texas won. Gray, who played five years as a defensive back for the Indianapolis Colts and one year with the Carolina Panthers, is in full time ministry in North Carolina.
But arguably one of the most stunning images involved the number of Ole Miss players who gathered for prayer before the start of Gator Bowl, that Ole Miss won 52-20 over the Duke Blue Devils.
Along with this, several players who were interviewed before and after games testified of their faith in Christ.
This included Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard who in an interview with ESPN after his team’s victory in the Cotton Bowl, said, “First of all, I want to thank my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Without Him, I wouldn’t be here and we wouldn’t be here as a whole group. … I’m just so grateful for this opportunity.”
Similarly, Ohio State QB thanked His Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, after winning the Rose Bowl.
While it is easy to testify of Jesus after a victory, what happens when the team loses? In the opinion of Goin-Philips, a testimony given after a team loss was perhaps the most powerful of them all.
Ahmed Hassanein, a defensive end for Boise State, teared up while thanking Coach Spencer Danielson for changing his life by leading Hassanein to Christ. Hassanein whose team had just lost their game with Penn State Nittany Lions also clearly presented the gospel to the reporters in attendance.
Typically players are interviewed for one of two reasons. They had an outstanding game or are recognized as one of the team’s best players or leaders.
So with an unusual number of players testifying of their faith, it tells us one of two things is occurring and probably both.
First, the Holy Spirit is moving in an unusual way on university campuses resulting in many players becoming Christians. We know over the past couple of years, that there have.been significant revival meetings taking place on American campuses. It all started with a moving of God at Kentucky’s Asbury University in 2023. Similar meetings have since taken place at universities across the US in 2024, including Ole Miss and Ohio State, where members of the school’s football team, the Buckeyes, were actively involved.
The second reason this may be happening is that the Holy Spirit is anointing Christian players, much in the same way God anointed Samson to carry out incredible athletic feats.
OpentheWord.org 
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