Former ASU athletics intern Cory Hall is in his first year as a member of the University of Minnesota athletics department. Last Sunday, Hall caught up with another former Mountaineer, Jason Hunter, following the Denver Broncos' 35-32 win over the Minnesota Vikings in Minneapolis.
The Denver Broncos and quarterback Tim Tebow have been one of the main storylines in the National Football League (NFL) over the past month or two, but the team's success goes deeper than the fleet-footed quarterback. The Broncos' defense has been a force the past month as it has held three of its past four opponents under 13 points. Part of the defensive success has been due to the performance of former Appalachian State University defensive lineman Jason Hunter, who has played an integral part in helping the Broncos rise to the top of the American Football Conference (AFC) West Division alongside the Oakland Raiders.
Last Sunday, the Broncos snuck out of Minneapolis, Minn. with a 35-32 comeback victory over the Minnesota Vikings to improve to 7-5 overall and grab their fifth straight win. The triumph at Mall of America Field places Denver in a tie for first in the AFC West with the Raiders and generates hope for the team's first playoff berth since 2005.
"We have been going through this since Miami (an 18-15 Denver win over the Dolphins on Oct. 23)," said Hunter, an All-American and integral part of Appalachian's first national-championship team in 2005. "We will keep fighting. However we can get the wins, we will take it. If we have to keep fighting until the fourth quarter and down to the last minute, we are going to do it."
Hunter is most remembered by ASU faithful for his stellar performance in the 2005 NCAA Division I-AA national championship game, during which he compiled 10 tackles, including two sacks, in the Mountaineers' 21-16 win over Northern Iowa. The most enduring image of Appalachian's first national-title run remains Hunter scooping up a fumble forced by fellow future NFLer Marques Murrell and returning it 15 yards for the game-winning touchdown in the fourth quarter of the championship-game triumph over UNI.
Hunter nearly reenacted the scene for Broncos fans last Sunday, when he scooped up his sixth career fumble recovery in Denver's three-point comeback victory over the Vikings.
The Broncos had their backs up against their own end zone midway through the first quarter when veteran safety Brian Dawkins stripped a scrambling Christian Ponder at the Denver 15 yard line. As the ball flung back towards midfield, Hunter ran down the loose pigskin and scooped it up at the 32. The 6-4, 271-pound defensive lineman then rumbled to midfield before being brought down, swinging both field position and momentum in favor of the Broncos.
"Not at one point in my mind did I think about just jumping on the ball. I saw the ball on the ground and I just wanted to pick it up and score," said Hunter. "I thought I had an open field. I wish I would have stiff armed the Vikings' offensive lineman and then no one would have caught me."
When asked about comparing how it felt to pick up the fumble last Sunday versus the 2005 national-title game, the sixth-year pro quickly responded in favor of the game-winning scoop-and-score from his final game in Black and Gold.
"It didn't feel quite as good as that one [the fumble recovery in the 2005 championship game] because it helped seal the deal for a national championship but it did feel good to give the offense the ball in good field position and another chance to score."
In his second season in Denver, Hunter has amassed 18 tackles, a sack and a forced fumble in 12 games.
After playing five of their last seven games on the road, Hunter and the 7-5 Broncos return home to Mile High Stadium on Sunday to host the Chicago Bears (7-5).
