Travis Hunter is making serious noise as the Heisman Trophy frontrunner, and his fiancée, Leanna Lenee, leads the hype train. In their Big 12 debut, Coach Prime’s team defeated the Baylor Bears 38-31, thanks to Hunter’s tackle on Baylor’s Dominic Richardson, in the last seconds of overtime.
The 22-year-old’s game-changing performance caught everyone’s attention, but Lenee’s reaction stood out. When Hunter posted some of his snapshots from the Baylor game on Instagram, she passionately wrote, “Heisman him NOW 😍.”
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One thing that makes the Colorado athlete a standout is his wide receiver and cornerback skills, which have given wings to Hunter’s 2025 NFL Draft stock. Talking about the projected top pick in next year’s NFL Draft, Nick Baumgardner from The Athletic praises Hunter, saying:
“His athletic burst, acceleration, agility, balance and body control are all elite, though. Most importantly, so are his ball skills.”
However, he pointed out that the 2024 Heisman frontrunner, standing at 6’1” and 185 pounds, may face some issues in the league owing to his slender build.
After four games into the 2024 college football season, Hunter‘s stats will give several NFL teams a headache on how to scoop him up next year. He has managed 37 receptions for 472 yards and five receiving touchdowns while recording 14 tackles and an interception on the defensive front. It’s safe to say the sky’s the limit for the Buffs player right now.
Travis Hunter Turning 2-Way Playing Criticism Into Motivation
Touted to become one of the NFL’s stars in the years to come, Hunter is a rare two-way player under the tutelage of NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders. Ever since his debut for the Buffs, many have marveled at Hunter’s versatility, but some critics believe his two-way playing style might not find success in the NFL.
The demanding nature of professional football has raised doubts about whether Hunter can sustain success on both sides of the ball at the next level. However, Hunter remains unfazed by such hate, paying no attention to them.
Discussing his future with Caroline Fenton from Yahoo Sports, he addressed the skepticism, saying:
“There’s a lot of people that have been telling me that since I’ve been playing it. So, I’m just gonna continue to prove them wrong. Keep proving the haters wrong. There’s a lot of haters, even the top dogs, top dogs are hating on me, but I let it go through one ear out the other, just let them keep hating.”
Deion Sanders is the face of College Football. There are better teams. There are better programs.
But win, lose or draw, no one has captivated college football like Coach Prime, Shedeur Sanders, Travis Hunter and Colorado.
Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter both made plays… pic.twitter.com/nmp4yDAtVo
— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) September 22, 2024
Hunter’s motivation finds its charge from these naysayers, but his ambition is clear. His goal is to become the first modern two-way star in the NFL.
Speaking to Forbes, he said, “One of my greatest strengths is my versatility as a player, and I love the challenge of learning and excelling in both roles and pushing my limits.”
From Hunter’s perspective, the question now is whether the NFL is ready for him to rewrite the playbook.