Travis Hunter makes case for Shedeur Sanders to be at Heisman Trophy ceremony

With two games left in the regular season, it’s a very safe bet that Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter will be a Heisman Trophy finalist in New York come December. But he’s adamant his quarterback should be there, too.

While it’s less likely that Shedeur Sanders will be a Heisman finalist, though still possible, his teammate plans to have him there one way or another. Speaking with reporters on a Zoom call on Thursday, Hunter seemed to intimate that if Sanders isn’t picked as a finalist, he’ll be at the ceremony as one of his guests.

But the bigger implication is that Hunter probably thinks they should both be finalists.

“Even if he not invited, he’s invited,” Hunter said.

And while Hunter is the odds-on favorite to win the award right now, he’s proud to share the pedestal with Sanders.

“We’re just super proud to have two people from our school to be able to be in the race,” Hunter said.

Shilo Sanders is backing his defensive back running mate for Heisman

Certainly, Hunter has the backing from his teammates at Colorado. That includes Shilo Sanders, who doesn’t know who else would even potentially win the prestigious award.

“Nobody really does that [discredit his campaign], honestly,” Sanders said. “Like, I’ve never heard anybody until you just said it. Travis is the guy. Who else would be the Heisman?”

Hunter has played nearly every snap this season for Colorado, proving to be a star at both wide receiver and defensive back. That is something that really is unheard of in college football since the two-platoon system became the standard in the sport. Through 10 games at receiver, Hunter has 74 receptions for 911 yards and nine touchdowns. He also has a rushing touchdown. Then, on the defensive side of the ball, he has 24 tackles, three interceptions, and eight passes defended.

Despite how impressive Hunter has been, there are still other legitimate Heisman candidates this season. That includes Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty, who has 1,893 rushing yards and 26 rushing touchdowns in 10 games this season. After that, there are several quarterbacks in the running, including Cam Ward at Miami and Dillon Gabriel at Oregon.

“He’s [Jeanty] good but whenever you watch Colorado and especially if you come to a game you understand,” Sanders said. “You watch on TV, it’s like you’re watching Travis the whole game. Am I lying? I don’t really hear a lot of people say bad stuff about Travis. You know, you watch him the whole game.”