A native of Rochester and a former East High School standout, you’d think Justus Ross-Simmons would have played in the Dome at least once in his life. But last Saturday was his time in pads on the sidelines.

“It was my first experience," Ross-Simmons said. "I never came to the Dome before. It was very exciting just to see all the fans out there, especially in our hometown, and the alumni and stuff.

Ross-Simmons made the most of his time on the field. Hauling in two touchdown catches, the first sparked SU’s 18-point, second-half comeback. What was even more special was him doing it while at less than 100% health. He’s battled a hamstring injury that led to a calf injury since fall camp.

“It tweaks here and there, but I'm still able to play, so I'm gonna do what I have to do with my team," Ross-Simmons said. "My team needs me, so I'm going out there and play. It's not restricting me from nothing at all. I can still play.”

It's a lingering injury that had him thinking of taking a redshirt season, but Fran Brown knew he would be needed and talked him out of it.

“He came and told me, 'Coach, I think I want to redshirt.' I said, 'Redshirt, my butt. You‘re not redshirting. You’re about to play this week like you're going to take off,'" Brown said. '"You're part of what we're doing just trust and believe it.' And then for that to happen for him, it's truly, it helps you for the future, you know? And it helps with all of the kids, and it gives hope to the entire football team.”

“He said I just got to be patient and stuff like that," Ross-Simmons said. "My time will come if I just be patient. He knew that like my hamstring was messed up and all that, but if you keep being patient, keep working, my time will come and my time came again.”

Ross-Simmons said he can be a vertical threat when he’s fully healthy. His play, especially with him being from upstate New York, can inspire others in the area.

“The better he does, the better it is for us because he is from Rochester, you know? This guy's local," Brown said. "So that helps in a recruiting game also and helps different things. So he's a big piece of who we are and what we're going to do. And I'm so thankful that he's almost back to be 100% because you see what he is when he's about 80%. So imagine once he gets to be full go.”

As the days go by, he only gets healthier. It comes at a welcome time as SU eyes a road date against a longtime rival in Boston College.

“It's going to be a big game as rivalry game, but we treat every game like every game," Ross-Simmons said. "So we're gonna go out there, do our best and play our hardest.”