ESPN First Take names Travis Hunter, Caitlin Clark as best athletes of 2024

There were plenty of athletes who stood out during 2024, but according to ESPN First Take analysts, a couple were better than the rest. First Take named Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter and Iowa/Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark as the best athletes of 2024 during Tuesday’s show.

Shannon Sharpe and Domonique Foxworth went with Travis Hunter as the best athlete of the year, while Shae Cornette chose Caitlin Clark.

“It’s Travis Hunter,” Shannon Sharpe said. “I mean what that guy did was simply amazing. We’ve seen guys play both sides of the ball. But we’ve never seen guys play this many snaps, at this level, on both sides of the ball.

“Charles Woodson did it, Champ Bailey did it, Myles Jack did it. But we’ve never seen anybody do this, dominate both sides of the football, like this young man. And he has the Heisman Trophy now to validate what he was able to do this season.”

Travis Hunter won the Heisman after catching 96 passes for 1,258 yards and 15 touchdowns. He also led the Buffaloes with four interceptions, in addition to having 35 tackles and 11 pass breakups.

As for Shae Cornette, she chose Caitlin Clark thanks to her impact on NCAA women’s basketball, as well as the WNBA.

Clark led Iowa to the national title game this past season, before leading the Indiana Fever to the playoffs. She was named the National Player of the Year in college basketball and won the WNBA Rookie of the Year. Clark also earned All-WNBA First-Team honors.

Caitlin Clark averaged 31.6 points, 7.4 rebounds and 8.9 assists per game for the Hawkeyes as a senior. During her rookie season with the Fever, Clark averaged 19.2 points, 5.7 rebounds and 8.4 assists per game.

“I’ve got Caitlin Clark,” Cornette said. “And again, there’s not much to argue about here. I think all these players are very deserving. But this chick did a lot this year for not only women’s basketball at the college level and WNBA, but just in general.

“She was on every headline. She broke the NCAA all-time scoring record. Led the Fever to a playoff berth in her first year in the WNBA. I feel like there was a point in time we couldn’t be on a show on this network without mentioning her name. And so congratulations, Caitlin, you will be my best athlete of 2024.”

It’s hard to argue against Travis Hunter and Caitlin Clark being the best athletes in 2024 with what they accomplished this year.