National Football League

Former Texas RB D'Onta Foreman reveals he lost son during season

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

Sports Illustrated, SI Wire/Sports Illustrated

Former Texas running back and NFL draft prospect D'Onta Foreman says that he played through the pain of losing his infant son last season.

Foreman said his son, D'Onta Jr., was born prematurely in September and died seven weeks later on Nov. 5 due to an intestinal infection.

"I really didn't know how to feel," Foreman said in an interview with NFL Network. "I was like numb. I felt like something was taken away from me before I had a chance to experience it."

The same day his son passed away, Foreman rushed for 341 yards and three touchdowns leading Texas to a victory over conference rival Texas Tech.

"It was just something about that game, it was like, 'I'm doing it for my son. I'm leaving it all out here,'" Foreman said.

Foreman led the nation in running with 2,028 yards during his junior season with the Longhorns, winning the Doak Walker Award, honoring the nation's top running back and was named an AP first-team All-American.

Foreman and his girlfriend are expecting a child on Sept. 16, which is the one-year anniversary of D'Onta Jr.'s birth.

- Scooby Axson