Duke receiver Blair Holliday is back with his teammates but he’s not playing football. After a near-fatal jet ski accident last summer, he’s fortunate to be able to walk.

“It was a surreal moment when he walked in our pregame meal all dressed to a T in his new suit,” Duke coach David Cutcliffe said during his weekly media teleconference. “He’s a big, tall young man. You could have heard a pin drop when he walked through the doors. Everyone was seated except me.”

Cutcliffe was preparing to bless the food when Holliday came through the door. “I said, ‘Hey everybody, let’s welcome back No. 8.” Holliday’s teammates and coaches gave him a standing ovation.

“He proceeded to go around the room giving people hugs, greeting people. It was really one of those times where the clock stopped. Time did stand still for a moment,” he said.

Cutcliffe wanted to Holliday to watch the game safely from his office overlooking the stadium but he would have none of that. Holliday went out for the coin toss and watched the game with his teammates. “I think he had the time of a lifetime just being back on the sideline with his buddies,” Cutcliffe said. “We were very happy that he was here.”

Still, it’s a long battle back and he probably won’t ever return to being an elite athlete. Cutcliffe said he has to fight the frustration and depression. “He’s making progress,” he said. “He’s got lots of challenges.”

But he’s alive and has the admiration, respect and love of a people, especially his teammates.