Shamarko Thomas injury: Syracuse safety leaves on helmet-to-helmet hit

Syracuse safety Shamarko Thomas walked off the field under his own power after a nasty helmet-to-helmet hit in the fourth quarter of Syracuse's one-point win over the Pittsburgh Panthers on Friday night. Thomas came up to make a tackle of Pitt tight end J.P. Holtz and their heads collided in violent fashion. Thomas's helmet went flying off and he instantly went to the ground. An animated gif of the hit:

The play happened right in front of the Syracuse sideline, and Thomas was immediately attended to by the trainers. The Orange players instantly took a knee, surrounding their teammate.

After being down on the field for a couple minutes, Thomas sat up and his concerned teammates quickly applauded, a signal to the crowd that Thomas appeared alert and mobile. Thomas got up shortly thereafter and walked to the sideline under his own power. He left the field and went to the locker room for further examination, and did not return in the final quarter as the Orange closed out the win over Pitt.