Buffs Player Who Survived Theater Shooting Aims For NFL

By Tom Mustin

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (CBS4) - Inside the Landow Performance Center in Englewood, Jordan Murphy is pursuing his NFL dreams.

"I don't think you can measure heart, and you can't measure work ethic. That's something I bring to the table," Murphy told CBS4's Tom Mustin.

Despite facing long odds, the former University of Colorado player is driven by a life-changing event. On July 20, 2012, Murphy and three friends went to the midnight showing of "The Dark Knight Rises" at an Aurora theater. Murphy had just been cut by the Colorado State University football team. He was told by coaches in Fort Collins he was too small for Division I football.

"I came into that night feeling sorry for myself and thinking, 'Man, what am I going to do with my life?' It was all about me," said Murphy.

Minutes later James Homes entered the theater.

"He launched two tear gas canisters -- one in the front and one in the back exit. He started opening fire," Murphy said.

In the ensuing panic, Murphy saw Holmes look right at him.

"He took a shot at me and I felt it fly by my head and hit the dry wall in front of me and just splattered it into my face."

AURORA THEATER SHOOTING: Story Archive | Timeline | Remembering The Victims

Murphy says he realized he had been given a second chance.

"I'd been given another opportunity to live life. That was the moment where I was like, 'I'm done feeling sorry for myself. I'm going to work as hard as I can to chase my dreams. I'm going to try to make such a terrible thing -- I'm going to try and make some small, miniscule amount of good from it.'"

Murphy transferred to CU, where although never a starter in Boulder, he made his mark on special teams. Now he's dedicated his NFL quest to the victims of the theater shooting.

"There were people that were going to become doctors in that theater, people that were going to become dentists that never got the chance to. I want to honor them," he told Mustin. "I said I'm going to do everything I can to chase this dream and do it in their honor."

Loren Landow has trained pro athletes from Tim Tebow to Missy Franklin. He calls Jordan hard-working, hungry, and humble. He believes Jordan can make it in the NFL.

"I think Jordan Murphy has a shot. If he can get his foot in the door, I think a team is going to fall in love with him,' said Landow.

Pro Day at CU is March 9. Murphy realizes he has a slim chance of making an NFL team. But the driven young man has spent his entire life beating the odds -- and he's not about to give up now.

"When you look at the odds they're not very pretty. When I looked at the odds my whole life they were never pretty. I was too small for Division I football. I wasn't supposed to make it out of that theater. The odds are long, but I'm going to work as hard as I can. It's really; it's more than football -- it's to honor those people."

Tom Mustin is CBS4's Weekend Anchor. He has been with CBS4 since 2002, and is always looking for great story ideas. Connect with Tom on Facebook or follow him on Twitter @TomCBS4.