SANDY, Utah — Alta High School students flooded to the bleachers this week to send a special message to a fellow student and football player who is recovering in the hospital after a major injury he suffered in a game.
Jalen Sutton, who recently turned 18, received a major injury when he made a tackle during Alta High School's junior varsity game at Stansbury High School on August 25.
He suffered a cervical spinal cord injury involving his C4 and C5 vertebrae and underwent surgery before being placed in the Intensive Care Unit.
In the weeks since his injury, support from the Utah community and football community has poured in for Sutton.
A new video from the Canyons School District shows a special show of support from Sutton's peers at Alta High School.
Hundreds of students are seen in the bleachers at the school singing 'Happy Birthday' to Sutton.
"Now this is school spirit," school district leaders said in a social media post.
Students hold up a banner and cheer for their fellow hawk, who is still recovering in the hospital.
In an update from family last week, they reported Sutton had been moved out of the ICU and into rehab, where he will be for a minimum of eight to ten weeks.
While he was still on a ventilator last week, doctors told the family that Sutton was able to mostly breathe on his own and he no longer needed breathing treatments.
There's still a long road to recovery ahead for Sutton and his family, but they said that the outpouring of community support has made all the difference.
