Why Travis Hunter is able to be the NFL’s subsequent star

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — When Travis Hunter walked the stage within the College of Colorado’s undergraduate graduation ceremony at Folsom Area stadium on Thursday, the white sash that topped his black robe instructed the world he is a first-generation faculty graduate.

What he wore underneath his tutorial gown instructed the world he is trying ahead to his first post-graduate job as an NFL receiver and cornerback.

Three weeks in the past, the Jacksonville Jaguars traded as much as choose the 2024 Heisman Trophy winner No. 2 general within the 2025 NFL draft. After all of the celebrating, cellphone calls, interviews, hugs, handshakes and congratulations had been over, Hunter’s first buy as a professional athlete was a pair of Jaguars pajama pants to put on at commencement.

“That is the very first thing I ordered off of Amazon after I obtained drafted,” stated Hunter, a two-time first-team tutorial All-American who graduated with a level in anthropology.

Simply 18 hours after drafting Hunter, Jacksonville’s first-year basic supervisor, James Gladstone, set stratospheric expectations on Hunter’s shoulders.

“He elevates not solely this soccer staff, not solely this metropolis, however the sport itself, proper?” Gladstone stated. “Alongside the way in which you’ll be able to rely nevertheless many drafts you need to, there are gamers who’ve the capability to change a recreation. There are gamers who’ve the capability to change the trajectory of a staff. There are only a few gamers who’ve the capability to change the trajectory of the game itself. Travis, whereas he nonetheless has lots to be taught, in our eyes, has the potential to do exactly that.”

That is actually nothing new for Hunter, who has been billed as a generational expertise since he starred on each side of the ball at Collins Hill Excessive Faculty in Suwanee, Georgia, then at Jackson State College, and eventually Colorado — defying conventional positional expectations as a full-time receiver and cornerback alongside the way in which.

Hunter’s 2024 season at Colorado was one of the crucial spectacular in NCAA historical past. He was the primary participant to earn two first-team All-America honors in the identical season (all-purpose and cornerback), and he was a second-team All-American at receiver. He additionally was the primary participant within the historical past of the Walter Camp Soccer Basis — the nation’s oldest All-America staff — to be named first-team All-America on offense and protection.

Those that coached him alongside his journey have referred to as him a prodigy and soccer savant whereas noting his humility. Now Hunter has the problem of turning into the face of a long-struggling franchise whereas attempting to determine himself because the NFL’s first full-time two-way participant in additional than 50 years.

Nobody has been a full-time participant on each side of the ball since Chuck Bednarik, who did it as a middle and linebacker for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1949 to 1962.

To excel at each positions in 2025 would make Hunter one of many league’s largest stars, and people round him imagine he cannot solely deal with that sort of stage however thrive — as a result of he has been doing all of it alongside.

“The quantity of consideration he had in 2021, 2022 as a highschool senior — I do know it pales compared to the NFL — however at that age, the way in which he dealt with himself [was impressive],” stated Otis Riddley, who was Jackson State’s director of participant personnel when Hunter arrived.

And as his Jackson State and Colorado coach Deion Sanders stated earlier than the draft: “Ain’t no person like Travis.”

IN THE SUMMER of 2018, Hunter confirmed up at Collins Hill Excessive Faculty for soccer exercises as a 150-pound child with a shiny, vast smile. Behind that smile, although, was a voracious work ethic and perception he needed to be one of the best at no matter he did.

Hunter performed within the secondary as a freshman. It wasn’t till his sophomore 12 months that he began taking part in receiver, too, intercepting seven passes and catching 49 passes, 12 of which went for touchdowns.

As a junior and senior he was probably the greatest gamers within the nation, amassing 3,404 all-purpose yards and scoring 40 complete touchdowns. He caught 222 passes for 3,030 yards and 36 touchdowns, ran 24 occasions for 239 yards and two scores, and intercepted 12 passes for 235 yards and two touchdowns.

As a senior, he was named a first-team All-American and the Atlanta Journal-Structure’s Georgia Participant of the Yr.

“He was too good to not play all the things, and he by no means got here off the sphere,” stated Collins Hill head coach Drew Swick, who was the varsity’s outdoors linebackers coach when Hunter arrived in 2018. “He simply has a motor and a drive that I had by no means seen earlier than.”

Swick stated Hunter was a employee throughout the summer time, too. His each day four-hour exercises on the college began at 7:30 a.m., after which he hung out on his footwork together with his private coach, Drew Johnson. He’d squeeze in some remedy, together with cryotherapy to cut back irritation, when wanted every day.

When he wasn’t doing any of that, he was watching movie of future opponents.

“Most children love soccer, however Travis Hunter lives soccer each single day,” Swick stated. “That is one of the simplest ways I can describe it. He lives it on daily basis and that is his No. 1 ardour. And he’s very, superb at it.

“He makes it appear like an artwork when he’s on the market taking part in. Not many guys can do it.”

Hunter’s mom, Ferrante Edmonds, previously told ESPN that she moved the household to Suwanee in 2018 in hopes of a greater life. After spending time residing with a good friend, the household finally moved into an prolonged keep lodge. By his sophomore 12 months, Hunter had requested to maneuver in with Collins Hill secondary coach Frontia Fountain, which meant Hunter needed to get to high school early every day.

Fountain lived outdoors of the district, so Hunter needed to experience with Fountain each morning, which meant a 5:20 a.m. arrival. Faculty did not start till 7 a.m., so Hunter would catnap underneath the desk in Fountain’s workplace for an additional hour or so.

Dwelling with Fountain additionally meant homework needed to be accomplished earlier than he did the rest. No video video games, no watching bass fishing movies (a passion of his) or movie of upcoming opponents.

“I knew he was going to be nice as a result of he was so targeted,” Fountain stated. “He was so targeted and pushed. Solely Travis can cease Travis, no person else, as a result of he’ll discover a option to make it occur.”

By the point his junior season started, Hunter was the No. 2 prospect within the nation within the 2022 ESPN 300 (defensive deal with Walter Nolen was No. 1) and was being recruited by high packages like Alabama, Florida and Oregon, amongst others.

Hunter made one factor clear to all of them: He needed to proceed to play each side of the ball in faculty.

Florida State coach Mike Norvell expressed curiosity in Hunter doing so, and Hunter dedicated to play for the Seminoles in March 2020, 5 months earlier than the beginning of his junior season.

However simply as that faculty 12 months started, Jackson State employed former NFL cornerback and Corridor of Famer Deion Sanders — who additionally took professional snaps at receiver over his 11-year NFL profession that started in 1989 — and Hunter’s collegiate plans quickly modified.

SANDERS, WHO PLAYED three sports activities (soccer, monitor and baseball) at Florida State, aggressively recruited Hunter, who took an official go to to Jackson State in November 2021 to observe the Tigers play Alcorn State. Hunter met Sanders’ son, quarterback Shedeur Sanders, on the journey and the 2 saved in contact. Shedeur Sanders later stated that he inspired Hunter to flip his dedication.

On Dec. 15, 2021, Hunter introduced he was signing with Jackson State, turning into the primary five-star recruit to signal with a traditionally Black faculty or college.

Having graduated highschool a semester early, he enrolled in faculty that spring and caught two touchdowns and two interceptions within the Tigers’ spring recreation, which was nationally televised on ESPNU after Hunter and Sanders helped increase this system’s profile.

Hunter missed 5 video games in his freshman season due to an undisclosed harm; he completed the season with 18 catches for 188 yards and 4 touchdowns on offense and broke up eight passes, intercepted two and scored a defensive landing. He was named a finalist for the Jerry Rice Award, given to the highest freshman participant in FCS soccer.

Riddley remembers how impressed he was with the way in which Hunter dealt with the eye he obtained, each from his choice to signal with the Tigers and the stress that got here with being one of many nation’s finest freshmen.

“He was completely different from the day he stepped foot on campus,” stated Riddley, now the varsity’s affiliate head coach/tight ends coach and basic supervisor. “He was gentle years forward and from the maturity standpoint, however he additionally was gentle years forward from the work ethic standpoint. He would not thoughts working. He would not thoughts doing the issues off the sphere to make him a greater athlete on the sphere.”

Jackson State had Hunter be taught the protection first and slowly added some offensive workload. The method went faster than anticipated, and Riddley stated any hesitation the teaching workers had about Hunter taking part in each methods evaporated just some weeks into spring follow.

“As soon as we obtained him on campus and noticed how sensible he was as a soccer participant it was a no brainer to permit him the chance to at the least strive each methods,” Riddley stated. “… I simply suppose that he is a savant in the case of soccer.”

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Hunter excelled on the FBS stage when he transferred, following Sanders to Colorado in 2023. Hunter caught 11 passes for 119 yards and had three tackles and an interception within the Buffaloes’ season-opening upset of TCU. Three video games later, he caught 13 passes for 140 yards and two touchdowns in a loss to Stanford. He had two interceptions in opposition to UCLA in Week 9.

Hunter missed three video games after present process surgical procedure for a lacerated liver, an harm he suffered in Week 3 in opposition to Colorado State. That season, he performed 984 complete snaps (sixth within the FBS), caught 5 touchdowns, intercepted three passes and allowed a 68.3 opposing QBR (rating 282nd in FBS) in 9 video games.

In 2024, Hunter improved. His 15 landing catches had been tied for second within the FBS, and his 96 catches had been tied for fourth in FBS. He intercepted 4 passes and allowed a 21.6 QBR (57th in FBS) — a giant enchancment from 2023.

Along with profitable the Heisman on the finish of the season, he turned the primary participant in faculty soccer historical past to win the Chuck Bednarik Award (defensive participant of the 12 months) and Fred Biletnikoff (most excellent receiver) Award.

Throughout these two seasons at Colorado, Hunter performed 2,442 snaps over 22 video games — 457 extra snaps than the subsequent highest FBS participant, OT Hayden Conner. There have been 34 situations through which an FBS participant performed 100 snaps in a recreation; Hunter accounted for half of them (no different participant had a couple of such recreation).

“You’ve a prodigy which will play piano, you’ve got a prodigy which will do violin, after which you’ve got a prodigy that performs soccer, and I believe that is what he’s,” Riddley stated.

Swick, Fountain and Riddley all used the identical phrase to explain how Hunter has been capable of deal with the fixed consideration, stress and scrutiny of the previous 5 years and stay the identical child he was when he first obtained to Collins Hill: humble.

“It is humorous. I do not actually see Travis such as you see him,” Fountain stated. “All people sees Travis because the well-known Travis. I see Travis because the little child that used to experience dwelling with me after college and experience to high school with me within the morning. We discuss the place he needed to go to high school and who he needed to be and what it took to get you to the subsequent degree and the subsequent degree. That is what I see.”

THE JAGUARS HAVE largely been irrelevant apart from their first 5 years of existence. Since posting 4 consecutive profitable seasons and playoff appearances from 1996 to 1999, the Jaguars have had back-to-back profitable seasons simply twice (2004-05 and 2022-23) and solely 4 playoff appearances (2005, 2007, 2012 and 2022).

Gladstone believes Hunter shall be a significant a part of altering that.

“Travis Hunter, he embodies perception,” Gladstone stated. “He is a uncommon individual. He is a uncommon participant. However he is additionally a reminder that the boundaries of the sport of soccer had been constructed to be challenged.”

That was the Jaguars’ plan once they made the transfer to go get Hunter. They plan to begin Hunter on offense and provides him a package deal on protection, however they are not but positive whether or not meaning 45 snaps on either side of the ball, 75% on offense and 25% on protection, or another breakdown.

First-time head coach Liam Coen stated Hunter has been studying the offensive and defensive playbooks, however they opted to have him simply catch passes throughout the Jaguars’ two-day rookie minicamp after which get him some defensive reps for the primary time this week — which is the final week of Part 2 of the offseason conditioning program.

Coen emphasised the have to be versatile of their method with Hunter as a result of all the things relies on how shortly he can be taught the offense and protection, his conditioning and stamina, and the way shortly his physique can rebound every week.

However the one factor everybody is bound about is what they need the consequence to be.

“We would like it to appear like what it seemed like at Colorado,” Coen stated, “and that will be fairly good for us.”

Hunter has embraced the problem.

“My job is to come back out and be Travis Hunter,” he stated. “Come out and play how they envision me to play and exceed all of the expectations.”

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Hunter’s former coaches are assured he’ll deal with the highlight that may include taking part in each side of the ball within the NFL due to all the things he has skilled over the previous 5 years, which incorporates having disposable earnings due to NIL offers with United Airways, NerdWallet, Cheez-It, Dick’s Sporting Items and Hey Dude footwear, amongst others.

“And he has not modified,” Riddley stated, “simply from a personality standpoint within the years in between. I simply suppose watching how he dealt with his recruitment out of highschool and coming to Jackson State after which even going to Colorado, he did all the things with grace. And for a child that age, that is fairly exceptional.

“I do not see an NFL test or NFL way of life altering that as a result of, despite the fact that he did not have cash three or 4 years in the past, he is had cash the final three years. And I do know it is not first-round cash, however I believe the way in which he is managed himself up till this level, it would not lend me to imagine he’ll be a child that’ll be distracted from the life-style that he might be offered with off the sphere.”

Hunter has been constant in saying that he is not pressured by something. He needs to play each side of the ball within the NFL and believes he shall be profitable doing so. He is not frightened about what anybody thinks concerning that, nor does he concern himself with anybody who doubts that he can.

As for being a franchise changer, Hunter is not pondering that method.

“I’ll come out and do my job,” Hunter stated. “I am not going to say I’ll change something. I do not need to set the expectation too excessive. I am simply going to come back in and do my job and hopefully we modify the environment.”