Big 12 Football

Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter says he wants to play in the Alamo Bowl in order to finish his college career "right" before entering the 2025 NFL Draft.

"It's definitely important, because I started this thing with Coach Prime, and Shedeur, and most of the coaches on the coaching staff, so I wanted to finish it off right," Hunter said on Friday (2:15 mark of the video below.)

"I didn't give them a full season my first year, so I'm gonna go ahead and end this thing off right. It's going to be our last game together, so I'm going to go out there and dominate, and show loyalty that I have for them."

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders has previously made it clear he expects his star players including Hunter to participate in the Buffaloes' final game of the season.

"We have a plethora of seniors that are pro-bound, and guess what? Every last one of them are going to play," Sanders said in a press conference last weekend. "We don't tap out. We don't sit out. This is a blessing to play this wonderful game. Our kids are going to play.

"We got a kid that's probably going to pick up— not probably, what am I talking about?— it's a fact that he's going to pick up the Heisman Trophy this week, and he's going to play."

For Hunter, who earned a spot among the four Heisman Trophy finalists after playing both wide receiver and cornerback for the Buffaloes this season, one additional game represents a bigger workload than most.

Hunter played more than 100 snaps in 10 games this season, and totaled an FBS-high 1,380 snaps in 12 games, per ESPN's Jeff Legwold.

The two-way player did not express any concern about the additional workload of a 13th game, telling reporters that he is "looking forward" to the bowl.

"I'm just excited to go out there and be able to play football one more time before we hit the offseason," Hunter said.

Hunter, Sanders and the rest of Colorado's departing players are set to play their final game with the Buffaloes when the Alamo Bowl kicks off between Colorado and BYU on Saturday, Dec. 28.

Travis Hunter, Colorado's two-way standout, was recognized for his efforts at both cornerback and receiver.

Hunter was the recipient of the Chuck Bednarik Award, which is given annually to college football's top defensive player. He became the first member of the Buffaloes to earn the honor.

He later earned the Biletnikoff Award as the best receiver in college football:

While operating as Colorado's No. 1 receiver throughout the year, the 21-year-old also started on the boundary in all 12 of the team's contests.

Fans were impressed with his accomplishment.

Hunter racked up 32 tackles, four interceptions, one tackle for loss and one forced fumble. His 11 passes defensed were also the most among all Big 12 players in 2024.

Hunter's ability to force turnovers at key points in Colorado's victories throughout the year helped the team finish with a 9-3 record and improve upon a 4-8 mark in 2023, which included a forced fumble that sealed a 38-31 win over Baylor on Sept. 21.

On Thursday, he won the award over finalists such as Penn State linebacker Abdul Carter and Ohio State safety Caleb Downs. Carter's 20 tackles for loss led the Big Ten, whole Downs racked up 62 total tackles for the Buckeyes in 2024.

Hunter's Bednarik Award victory wasn't met with unanimous approval, though.

As for his Biletnikoff victory, he showcased his ability to make contested grabs and rack up yards after the catch in 2024. His 14 receiving touchdowns and 1,152 receiving yards ranked No. 2 and No. 6 among all wideouts in the country, respectively.

Hunter also finished the year with a conference-leading 92 catches.

With his wins on Thursday, Hunter continued to add some more hardware to his collection. He previously earned the Lott IMPACT Trophy, Paul Hornung Award and the AP college football player of the year.

He's also been selected as a 2024 Heisman Trophy finalist.

While it remains to be seen if he'll earn Heisman honors, he was still selected as college football's best receiver and top overall defensive player.

In the first major award race between Travis Hunter and Ashton Jeanty, the Colorado superstar came out on top.

The Associated Press announced on Thursday that Hunter has been named its 2024 College Football Player of the Year. He received 26 out of a possible 43 votes from a panel of AP Top 25 voters.

Jeanty finished second with 16 votes. Arizona State running back Cameron Skattebo received the other vote to finish in third place.

Hunter and Jeanty have been vying for the top spot in the Heisman race all season. Hunter's case is built on his ability to play at a high level on both sides of the ball.

The Colorado sensation finished the regular season ranked second in the nation in receiving touchdowns (14), fifth in receptions (92) and sixth in receiving yards (1,152) on offense. He also finished tied for eighth in pass breakups (11) and tied for 17th in interceptions (four).

Despite the individual accolades, Hunter gave credit for his success this season to his teammates.

"Couldn't do what I do without my team," Hunter said in an email to Pat Graham of the AP as part of the award announcement. "So I view being up for these awards as team awards."

Jeanty led Boise State to a Mountain West title and an appearance in the College Football Playoff. He has the fourth-highest single-season rushing total in FBS history with 2,497 yards and at least one more game to play to catch Barry Sanders' record of 2,628 yards.

Skattebo was the surprise finisher in the AP voting. He certainly deserved consideration as the driving force on offense for the Big 12 champion Sun Devils. The sophomore has 2,074 yards from scrimmage and 22 total touchdowns in 12 games.

Both Hunter and Jeanty were named finalists for the Heisman Trophy this week, but Skattebo did not make the cut. Quarterbacks Dillon Gabriel of Oregon and Cam Ward of Miami are the other two finalists who will be in New York for the ceremony.

Travis Hunter seems poised to be one of the top players selected in the 2025 NFL draft if he decides to leave Colorado. Now, he has secured an endorsement deal from Adidas.

Per Nick DePaula of Boardroom, Hunter has signed with Adidas to wear their apparel in the NFL.

The list of current NFL players who have endorsement deals with Adidas includes Patrick Mahomes, Brock Purdy, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Tua Tagovailoa and Chris Jones.

Hunter has not formally declared for the upcoming draft, but he told reporters during a media call on Nov. 21 that he was "definitely" going to the NFL next season.

The NFL recently implemented new deadlines for underclassmen to declare for the draft based on when the college team's season ends. The soft deadline is Jan. 6 for players whose teams have completed their season.

There seems to be very little doubt that Hunter would change his mind. He is a finalist for the Heisman Trophy after racking up 1,152 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns as a receiver, along with 11 pass breakups and four interceptions playing cornerback this season.

Assuming Hunter makes his draft decision official in the near-future, the next step will be if he can make himself the No. 1 overall pick. B/R's NFL scouting department has him ranked as the top player in the 2025 class.

It's very difficult for a player who isn't a quarterback or defensive end to be selected at the very top of the draft. The last non-quarterback or defensive end to be selected first overall was offensive tackle Eric Fisher by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2013.

Given that the Las Vegas Raiders and New York Giants are currently projected to pick first and second in the draft, it would seem unlikely Hunter will go that high because of their need at quarterback.

Hunter's floor could end up being No. 3 overall where the New England Patriots currently sit.

Travis Hunter doesn't regret his decision to flip his commitment from Florida State to Jackson State heading into college and eventually following head coach Deion Sanders to Colorado.

As he said on The Pivot Podcast (h/t Dan Morrison of On3), the decision proved prescient:

I think I asked [Coach Sanders] this question two months ago. I said, 'What would we be if I didn't decide to go there?' And I still don't know the answer because when I first talked to him it was like I don't care who he is, I don't want to go there. But, as I talked to him more, it was like this might be the place. He's more than just a coach, he's a father. I'd be at his house up at 1:00 and I'd leave in like the next three hours and I'd still be up, running around. I don't know where I would be. I've tried to figure that out. I try not to think too much on it because we've got one more game. It's going to be our last together. It gets you kind of emotional because it changed my life forever. I texted him that one game a couple of games ago, like, 'Coach, you changed my life forever.' Just being able to see where I'm at now, I don't know where I would have been at if I went to Florida State.

Hunter, 21, probably could have remained an excellent two-way player had he gone to Florida State, though he noted that he didn't believe the Seminoles would have allowed him to play on both sides of the ball. He also would have won an ACC title last season and controversially come up just short of reaching the College Football Playoffs.

But would he be a Heisman Trophy finalist this season had he remained committed to the Seminoles? Would he have been a three-year starter had he not joined Sanders at Jackson State and later Colorado? Would he have earned the same level of NIL earnings or had the same level of cultural impact?

Those questions are impossible to answer with certainty, of course. What isn't debatable is that the path he took worked out just fine for him.

Under Sanders' tutelage, Hunter caught 92 passes for 1,152 yards and 14 touchdowns on offense, adding 31 tackles, four interceptions and 11 passes defensed on defense. He's the frontrunner to win the Heisman and very well could end up as the top overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft.

The only question truly surrounding Hunter is whether he'll be more of a receiver or cornerback in the NFL. It's hard to imagine him surviving the rigors and commitments of the pro game on both sides of the ball, though he's hoping to be given the chance to prove he can handle the responsibility.

"Whatever helps my team, that's what I'm going [to do], but hopefully they give me the chance to show them what I can do on both sides of the ball," he told ESPN's Scott Van Pelt on Tuesday.

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders may not be happy that Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel was named a Heisman Trophy finalist over his son Shedeur Sanders.

The Buffs coach shared a graphic on Wednesday favorably comparing Sanders' season stats to Gabriel's.

Shedeur Sanders recorded 368 more passing yards, seven more touchdowns and two more interceptions in one fewer game than Gabriel.

Those are the kind of stats Colorado highlighted in a packet hyping up Sanders and cornerback/receiver Travis Hunter to Heisman trophy voters last month.

The voters ultimately nominated Hunter alongside Gabriel, who inarguably won out over Sanders in terms of results.

The Ducks remained undefeated all the way through the Big Ten Championship Game, triumphing over three ranked opponents along the way to earn the No. 1 seed to the CFP.

The Buffaloes meanwhile missed out on the first expanded playoff after suffering three losses behind Sanders.

Those losses included a ranked Kansas State team, as well as a late-season defeat against Kansas during which Sanders said the Buffaloes "fumbled" their shot at the Big 12 title game.

Sanders' Heisman bid may have fallen short, but Deion Sanders has plenty of motivation to continue hyping up his son as the 2025 NFL draft approaches.

Sanders is a prospective first-round pick who is currently ranked as the No. 9 overall prospect and No. 2 quarterback on the latest 2025 B/R NFL Draft Big Board. B/R NFL scouts meanwhile rank Gabriel as the No. 88 overall prospect and No. 8 quarterback available in the upcoming draft.

Shedeur Sanders isn't too torn up that he wasn't named a finalist for the Heisman Trophy.

The Colorado star quarterback said on his podcast, 2Legendary with Sheduer Sanders, that he has all the validation he needs and said he'll be more than happy if his teammate, Travis Hunter, takes home the award.

"I'm not really tripping on it. Honestly, I don't need other validation to know who I am," Sanders said (2:45 mark). "So I don't really care. As long as they give at least one of us the respect we deserve, that's all that matters to me. If I won an award, it's on behalf of the team, the o-line, the receiving core, because without those guys I wouldn't be able to do it. So if Travis (Hunter) wins an award, it's because of the team. We're not selfish people to where we just care about our own accolades... If Trav wins the Heisman, I feel like I won the Heisman because we're all part of something."

Sanders had a Heisman-caliber season, throwing for 3,926 yards, 35 touchdowns and just eight interceptions. Both his yardage numbers and touchdown numbers ranked near the top of the list in all of college football.

Ultimately he didn't receive an invite to New York for the Heisman Trophy ceremony. Instead, Hunter, Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty, Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel and Miami quarterback Cam Ward were named finalists.

Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter says it is "definitely" important that his name is called first when the 2025 NFL draft takes place this April.

"Definitely, man. I want to be No. 1," Hunter said when asked if he cared where he landed in the draft on The Pivot Podcast (40:00 mark of the video below.)

Hunter continued: "That's the first thing I dreamed of. I ain't dreamed of winning the Heisman. I dreamed of being No. 1."

When asked why the top pick was important to him, Hunter answered, "I'm the first to do it in my family. Why not keep going, and be the first?"

Hunter was one of four players named to the list of Heisman Trophy finalists on Monday.

He joined Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel, Miami quarterback Cam Ward and Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty on the final list after succeeding on both sides of the ball for Colorado.

Hunter made 92 catches for 1,152 yards and 14 receiving touchdowns during the regular season, while adding another touchdown on the ground to cap off his offensive resume. He recorded four interceptions and 11 passes defended on the other side of the ball.

Although Hunter has previously said he wants to continue developing as a two-way player once he turns pro, some scouts have reportedly indicated they expect that to change when Hunter is faced with an NFL workload.

Hunter is listed as the No. 1 overall prospect in the latest Top 100 Player Rankings by B/R NFL scouts, but his position in the final draft order will be determined in large part by which club ends up at the top of the draft. Should a team like the New York Giants get the first pick, they could choose to take a swing at a quarterback regardless of other positional rankings.

The Heisman Trophy winner will be announced on Saturday, but Hunter will have to wait until April 24 to find out about his position in the upcoming draft.

Colorado two-way superstar Travis Hunter vouched for his Heisman Trophy candidacy during his appearance on The Pivot Podcast.

When asked if he felt he deserved to win it, the Heisman finalist had this to say (conversation begins at 20:14).

"I definitely believe I deserve to win it," Hunter said. "What player you know can play receiver, get double teamed, still get a 1,000 yards, and the gameplan is about you on the offensive side of the ball, and then you go to the defensive side of the ball, and the gameplan is still about you, and I still ended up with four interceptions, 11 pass breakups and [31] tackles, which I shouldn't be tackling...

"I gave them one touchdown, which was all my fault. Sleeping out there, getting too relaxed. But guess what? I bounced back, locked up my side of the field. I should have had at least seven interceptions. Defense is way harder than catching the ball on offense. I had butterfingers on defense the last couple games. Still was able to come back with one more before the season ended. I definitely think I should win it. You've never seen a player like me, as we was talking about earlier. I don't think there's ever going to be another player that go out there and plays 1,000 snaps a season..."

In 12 regular-season games, Hunter caught 92 passes for 1,152 yards and 14 touchdowns in addition to his aforementioned four interceptions, 11 pass breakups and 31 tackles.

Hunter is one of four Heisman finalists alongside Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty, Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel and Miami signal-caller Cam Ward. At this time, Hunter is a monstrous -2500 favorite to win the trophy, per DraftKings Sportsbook. That gives him implied odds of just over 96 percent to win, per Action Network.

So Hunter is all but a lock to win the award, which is certainly understandable given his two-way prowess. But the fact of the matter is Hunter has to exude a lot of energy each week to play elite ball on both sides. And not only that, but he's hustling on every play, as he alluded to in his remarks on the podcast.

"It's kind of crazy. They always talk about, 'he playing a lot of snaps.' But if you actually look at the game, you know, instead of the highlights, you see I'm always out there running 100 percent. It's a lot of stats out there just hustle plays that you don't get to see. You know I'm out there running people down there trying to you know put in all my effort, and then I come back and the next play I'm fully energized to do it again. There's not a lot of people that can do that."

In most other years, Jeanty's phenomenal season would be enough to earn a Heisman. The leader of the College Football Playoff's No. 3 seed has accounted for 2,613 total yards and 30 touchdowns. He rushed for 200 or more yards in six of the 12-1 Broncos' 13 games, including 209 in the Mountain West Championship Game.

But it looks like Hunter's year. Simply put, he's a generational talent, and that looks as if it'll be recognized with a Heisman on Dec. 14 in New York.

Liberty quarterback Kaidon Salter has reportedly identified some potential landing spots as he prepares to enter the transfer portal.

According to Pete Nakos of On3.com, Salter is planning to take visits to Colorado, Florida State and Syracuse. UCLA and Auburn are also reportedly among the schools that have shown interest in landing him.

Salter announced his intentions to transfer from Liberty earlier this month with a lengthy statement posted to social media.

The signal-caller starred for the Flames for the last four seasons and appeared in 35 games. After redshirting in his first year with the team, he appeared in 33 games and made 29 starts over the last three seasons before finishing with career numbers of 5,887 passing yards, 56 touchdowns, and 17 interceptions while also adding 2,013 rushing yards and 21 more scores.

Salter had a breakout year in 2023 when he led Liberty to a 13-1 record, a Conference USA championship and an appearance in the Fiesta Bowl while setting single-season program records with 32 passing touchdowns and 1,089 rushing yards. However, he was less effective this year with 1,886 passing yards, 15 touchdowns and six interceptions while adding 587 rushing yards and seven scores as the Flames went 8-3.

Prior to joining Liberty, Salter was committed to Tennessee out of high school. Thomas Goldkamp of On3.com noted that the Vols dismissed him the summer before his freshman year due to a pair of arrests and suspensions by the program.

Salter is widely regarded as one of the top quarterbacks in the transfer portal this year, so he would be an instant difference-maker. Perhaps joining head coach Deion Sanders at Colorado to replace impending NFL draft prospect Shedeur Sanders would give Salter the opportunity to show his skills on a big stage.