Travis Hunter has taken the college football world by storm the last two years. The two-way Colorado superstar has excelled on both sides of the ball. He’s amazingly played like an award-winner on each side, and 2024 has been his most tremendous effort yet. Several have stumped for him to win the Heisman Trophy all season long.
That’s only continued further as his excellent season toils on. Hunter had a terrific game against Texas Tech on offense and defense. On Monday, Joel Klatt took note of that, and declared him the Heisman frontrunner.
In the Fox analyst’s eyes, it’s not even close. He’s a unicorn to Klatt, and he believes everyone should take the time now to realize what’s in front of them.
“Travis Hunter is a unicorn. Total unicorn. And I just want to appreciate what he is doing and what we’re seeing. Because we’re never gonna see this again,” Klatt said. “Okay? There comes a time when, as a sports fan, you’ve got to sit back and actually take stock in what you’re witnessing.”
Klatt continued, citing some of the biggest names in sports history. “I think a lot of us do that when we watch LeBron play, or those of us who got to watch Michael Jordan play. I’m sure this is how people felt when they watched Mickey Mantle play, or how I felt when I got to stand there when I was a Minor League baseball player and watched Barry Bonds take batting practice. Or when we watched Tiger Woods hit a golf ball. There are things we just know are never gonna see again. And this is one of those things.”
Klatt then made his declaration.
“Travis Hunter is 1 of 1. Period. He is the favorite by a wide margin for the Heisman Trophy,” he said. “Nobody is doing anything close to what he’s doing right now. He played 170 snaps against Texas Tech. 170. That is absurd. Absurd.”
Klatt then acknowledged Boise State star Ashton Jeanty, but said that if CU makes the Big 12 Championship Game, then the award should be Hunter’s.
“He is going to win the Heisman if Colorado gets to the Big 12 Championship Game. And he should. And he should. Because no one else is doing this. All due respect to Ashton Jeanty, you’re having a great year. But like, a Mountain West running back is not winning the Heisman Trophy over a guy that’s in the Big 12 doing what he’s doing on boh sides of the ball. He’s gonna be a finalist for the Thorpe Award, and he’s gonna be a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award. And he might win one of them, and he should probably win the Thorpe because no one even throws to him.”
