When Travis Hunter, the No. 1 player in the 2022 recruiting class, chose to play at Jackson State for Deion Sanders, it surprised many. Most thought Hunter would play for the Florida State Seminoles, as he had previously committed to the ACC power at one point.
However, he decided to bet on himself and head to a nontraditional power in Jackson State to play for Sanders. He then followed Sanders again when Sanders took the head coaching job at Colorado in December 2022.
Hunter detailed that decision in an interview on ESPN’s “College GameDay” on Saturday. He said the most significant factor was Sanders allowing him to play offense and defense full-time.
“That definitely was the biggest factor,” Hunter said on September 7. “Him saying he would give me that chance, other coaches said they’d put a package in for me, and I wasn’t going for that. I can’t just have a package. I need to be in the game.”
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Hunter has excelled as a top two-way player in the game. He had over 700 receiving yards in just nine games in 2023 and also proved to be one of the sport’s best cornerbacks.