NEW YORK — Travis Hunter loves the metaphorical bright lights. It’s only appropriate he’s honored among literal ones.
Hunter, once a Collins Hill sensation and the country’s No. 1 recruit, is one day from potentially joining college-football immortality. He’s a Heisman Trophy finalist, gracing the bright lights of Times Square this weekend with the same bravado he’s shown over the past three seasons at Colorado and Jackson State.
“There was definitely never a ‘Heisman dream,’” Hunter said Friday when finalists spoke with reporters. “But being here now feels like a dream come true. I never dreamed of this, but I’m here now.”
It’s no surprise that Hunter is here. This was expected of him entering the season. This is projected brilliance coming to fruition, a 1-of-1 excelling even beyond vast expectations. Hunter is the exceptionally rare two-way football player as Colorado’s top receiver and No. 1 cornerback. He succeeds in a flashy manner, too, and has become arguably the most famous collegiate player in recent years.
But before all the fame, accolades and admiration, Hunter was performing the same on a smaller scale: Gwinnett County. While Hunter is from South Florida — he relocated to the Atlanta area in the eighth grade — he feels he truly became a football player in Georgia.
“(My time at Collins Hill) means a lot; that’s kind of where my journey started for real,” Hunter said Friday during the Heisman finalists’ media availability. “I wasn’t really a good player going into my eighth-grade year. A lot of people helped me out in a lot of areas. So I’m grateful for being able to go to Collins Hill and for the coaches and people who helped me.”
At Collins Hill, Hunter recorded seven interceptions his sophomore year while hauling in 12 touchdown passes. His junior season, he had eight interceptions and caught 137 passes for 1,746 yards and 24 scores (all county records). In his final season, he had 76 catches and 10 touchdowns, with four interceptions. Collins Hill had a perfect season, winning its first state championship, while Hunter set the state’s career receiving touchdown record (48; it’s now second behind Jaden Gibson’s 59).
It’s not uncommon for prized prospects to produce as two-way players, but they don’t usually stick with it. That’s what makes this situation so unique. Hunter has made headlines since switching his Florida State commitment to HBCU Jackson State, where he joined coach Deion Sanders before they moved to Colorado after one season.
“It was God’s plan,” Hunter said. Sanders, one of the grand athletes in American sports history, has overseen Hunter’s development and built an environment conducive to maximizing his abilities.
Sanders permitted Hunter to play offense and defense at both their stops, going against conventional logic in a landscape that almost always demands commitment to one or the other. Hunter pulled it off, though, at an elite level. And it seemed so effortless. The snap count piled up, yet he never looked gassed. He stood out as the best individual talent in nearly all of his collegiate games. And that’s why following Colorado’s bowl game, he’ll begin preparing for the NFL draft, in which he’s expected to be among the first five selections.
Colorado improved from 4-8 to 9-3 this season, its first in the Big 12. Hunter was a significant part of the turnaround. He had 32 tackles with four interceptions and 11 passes defended as a cornerback. He had 1,152 yards and 14 touchdowns on 92 catches as a receiver.
If Hunter wins the Heisman Trophy, his snap count and responsibilities will have played a sizable role. He played 1,380 snaps over 12 games; that’s 670 on defense, 686 on offense and 24 on special teams. He was tasked with containing the opposition’s No. 1 wideout while taking on its No. 1 cornerback. His impact measures beyond counting stats.
“It’s just my mindset,” Hunter said. “If you believe you can do it, you’ll be able to do it. I do a lot of treatment, take care of my body and do a lot of recovery. So it’s easier for me to have a lot of things on my plate.
“I’m definitely not tired. I might be a little tired sleeping-wise because I take a nap at 1 p.m. every day and I didn’t get that chance today. But I’m good.”
Hunter is joined by running back Ashton Jeanty (Boise State) and quarterbacks Cam Ward (Miami) and Dillon Gabriel (Oregon) as Heisman finalists. Hunter is the favorite with Jeanty behind him.
Jeanty had a remarkable campaign in which he ran for 2,497 yards on 344 carries (7.3 average) and scored 30 total touchdowns. Despite facing defenses stacked in the box, he ran for at least 125 yards in each game. The Broncos made the 12-team College Football Playoff as the Group of Five representative; they likely don’t achieve that without Jeanty.
And so the discussion commenced, Hunter or Jeanty? There are arguments for both. Maybe a sign of what’s coming when the Heisman is presented Saturday: Hunter became the first player to win the Bednarik Award (best defender) and Biletnikoff Award (best receiver) on Thursday.
“A lot of respect,” Jeanty said Friday of Hunter. “He’s a special player. He’s doing a lot of great things. They put Colorado back on the map, he’s helped them do that. Then to be here at the Heisman as a finalist, obviously you have to be a special player to do that. Kudos to him.”
The Heisman undoubtedly has been on Hunter’s mind lately. He struck the Heisman pose after an interception return against Utah last month. He wore his “He12man” wristband Friday around fellow finalists.
In October, Hunter was on the “Outta Pocket with RGIII” podcast and expressed opinion that his performance is rarer than Jeanty’s. “It’s not like we haven’t seen a running back who’s good,” Hunter said, faming the flames on a debate that’ll come to the forefront Saturday (Hunter was extremely complimentary of Jeanty on Friday).
Wherever one stands, the college football world might never see another Hunter. His ability could be acknowledged in the greatest way Saturday, and if it is, his uniqueness still would stand out among a club of the unique.
“(The trophies I’m winning are) going to be front and center in my game room,” Hunter said. “Hopefully, I’ll be able to put all the uniforms I played in this season, all the cleats and all the drip that I had on in some kind of picture frame and have the trophies in front. It means a lot to me. I didn’t dream of having all these trophies, so I have to find something to do.”
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