Travis Hunter’s Heisman highlight reel was capped off by a touchdown catch while being tightly guarded by a defender.
If his three touchdowns and an interception weren’t enough to earn him college football’s top award, then his coach believes there’s nothing more Hunter could do.
“Travis clinched the Heisman today with his performance,” said Deion Sanders after No. 23 Colorado’s 52-0 victory over Oklahoma State on Friday, which kept their outside hopes alive for the Big 12 title game.
Hunter finished with 10 receptions for 116 yards, leading the Buffaloes (9-3, 7-2, No. 25 CFP) to a bowl game. His three touchdown catches gave him 14 for the season, breaking Nelson Spruce’s record of 12 in 2014. After his third touchdown, Hunter struck the Heisman pose.
“He’s the best player in college football. You can try to hate, criticize, or condemn him, but you won’t look professional,” Sanders said. “Travis Hunter proved today, and every week, that he is the best player in college football.”
His quarterback, Shedeur Sanders, shared the same view, even counting out Hunter’s touchdowns on his fingers as they celebrated.
“There’s no argument at this point,” Sanders said of Hunter’s Heisman chances. “The consistency he has is what the award is all about.”
Shedeur Sanders also had a great game, throwing for 438 yards to break the school’s single-season passing record. He finished the regular season with 3,926 yards, surpassing Koy Detmer’s 1996 record of 3,527. Sanders also threw five touchdown passes, increasing his total to a school-record 35 for the season.
With their work done, the Buffaloes need help from other teams to make it to the conference championship game on Dec. 7 in Arlington, Texas. One possibility requires losses from No. 14 Arizona State (against Arizona), No. 19 BYU (against Houston), or No. 17 Iowa State (against Kansas State). Another scenario would require a loss by BYU and a win by Texas Tech (against West Virginia).
“Look at how we rebounded,” Deion Sanders said after their 37-21 loss to Kansas last weekend affected their conference title game hopes. “Look at how we wiped our tears and got back up, got on the horse and yelled, ‘Giddy-up.’”
Colorado quickly jumped to a 21-0 lead in the first quarter and kept the momentum going into the second half. The defense forced four turnovers, including a pick-6 by DJ McKinney. This was Colorado’s first shutout since a 34-0 win over Arizona on October 16, 2021.
LaJohntay Wester also had a strong game, finishing with 11 catches for 175 yards and two touchdowns. With 322 career receptions, he now ties for sixth on the NCAA’s all-time receptions list.
Before the game, Shedeur Sanders won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award as the nation’s top quarterback, marking what could be the first of many awards for him and Hunter.
Hunter was, however, not named a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award, which goes to the top defensive back, a decision that upset Coach Deion Sanders. Hunter had an easy interception early in the game when Maealiuaki Smith threw an off-target pass in the first quarter, though he dropped another.
Oklahoma State finished the season on a nine-game losing streak after being picked to finish third in the preseason media poll. This marked the Cowboys’ first winless conference season since 1994, when they were part of the Big 8.
“That one didn’t turn out the way we wanted it to,” said Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy. “I don’t even have to look at the stat sheet, but we didn’t really give ourselves a chance on offense. It was so bad, it’s hard to point to anything.”
