2024 Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter has been vocal about his admiration for his HBCU beginnings, where his college career began under Deion Sanders.
Even after transferring to Colorado, the likely Top 5 NFL draft pick said on a recent episode of Cam Newton’s podcast that Jackson State has as much right to claim him as a Heisman winner as CU does.
“I looked at it from the standpoint of if I go here, I open up more doors,” said Hunter, who shocked the world by decommitting from Florida State to attend Jackson State in 2022. “My name is always going to be there; [people will say] ‘He went to an HBCU first.'”
Travis Hunter Declares Himself a Jackson State Heisman Trophy Winner pic.twitter.com/OT9qtdBqTX
— Tiger Talk TV (@TigerTalk_TV) February 10, 2025
Hunter, the first-ever Five-Star recruit to commit to and play at an HBCU, was SWAC freshman of the year and second-team all-conference for the SWAC-champion Tigers in 2022.
He scored four touchdowns as a receiver and one more as a cornerback. Hunter, brothers Shedeur and Shiloh Sanders all went to Colorado with Deion Sanders when he accepted the Buffaloes’ head coaching position that December.
When Newton asked Hunter if Jackson State could say they had a Heisman trophy winner, he didn’t hesitate.
“Definitely,” he responded. “That’s where I started. I went to Jackson State.”
