After over two decades of infamy, Bill Gramatica may finally be off the hook.
University of Memphis wide receiver Demeer Blankumsee had his “wanna get away?” moment on Saturday against UTSA. The senior Blankumsee was having a career day up to that point and got loose in the second quarter for a 69-yard touchdown reception from Tigers quarterback Seth Henigan. It was Blankumsee’s second touchdown of the day and gave him 142 total yards receiving on the day (on top of giving Memphis a 24-14 lead).
But it all went bad really quickly when Blankumsee went to celebrate his touchdown grab in the end zone. In the style of Portuguese soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo’s iconic “SIUUUUU!” celebration, Blankumsee leapt high in the air and tried to strike a pose. But his left leg buckled a bit upon the landing, causing Blankumsee to immediately come up hobbling.
Check out the video.
Demeer Blankumsee with the long touchdown but he seemed to hurt himself on the celebration… pic.twitter.com/MTrylqKxWU
— Mr Matthew CFB (@MrMatthew_CFB) November 2, 2024
Here is another angle that showed the the leg buckle.
ain’t no way he hurt himself doin the ronaldo siuuuuuuu cele pic.twitter.com/M935KgxUqP
— Devin Walker (@Devin_Walker2) November 2, 2024
Blankumsee ultimately had to go to the locker room afterwards and missed a couple of drives. Though he would return to the game for some running plays, Blankumsee did not make another catch for the rest of the game. To add insult to injury too, the Tigers ended up blowing their double-digit lead and lost to UTSA 44-36.
The Ronaldo “SIUUUUU!” celebration is a very popular one and is often imitated by other athletes (it even made a cameo at the Paris Olympics this year). But instead of joining Ronaldo’s class, Blankumsee instead became the latest football player to suffer an embarrassing injury while celebrating.
