Sorry onehorsepower, canteloupes are not like tomatoes and ripen in a sunny window or something. They need all their foliage to produce sugar and ripen properly. I find that melons can be very sensitive to being moved let alone trimmed and can totally kill the entire plant as it gives an entry point for disease and fungus. I tried in the past to let them sit in the house to ripen but they just get soft/desiccate and rot from the inside. Next year will be a new year, get some new specs for your husband and keep a tight leash on him around the melon patch.
Glenn

Thank you Glenn10! So sad to see the waste. I will make sure to put husband repellent around the melon patch.

Glenn is 100% correct, once a cantaloupe is severed from its vine it has all the sugar it will ever have. However, you may very well be surprised and find that your cantaloupes are riper than you think they are, especially if they are football sized. Keep in mind that most commercial growers, especially in central America, pick their cantaloupes much earlier than you or I would-usually when they are completely green on the outside with no sign of the yellowing we like to see in our garden raised melons. And while your melons won't get any sweeter, they will soften up a little which makes them taste a little more ripe. Of course, there is a fine line between them softening and them starting to rot. I am sorry for your bad luck and I know it hurts to baby them all summer and loose them near the end, but it could be worse! I accidently got round-up (via wind drift) on a section of my patch and killed vines holding about 20 cantaloupe which were also late in their growth stage! A few of them surprised me by ending up being ripe enough to eat, so maybe you'll be as lucky.

Agree with cityman. I just experienced this. You better cut one...like he says...it may be riper than you think.

Thank you thecityman and Appleseed70! I opened one last night -- the flesh was still green and tasteless, but the texture was great! I just couldn't throw it away. Already chopped it in cubes and will blend it with other sweet fruits for morning smoothie!