Travis Hunter should be the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy, but voters are too worried about losses and statistics

Baylor running back Dominic Richardson was rumbling toward the goal line for a potential game-tying touchdown in overtime in Saturday night’s game against Colorado. The only thing separating Richardson from the end zone was Travis Hunter.

Richardson had a head of steam and a 30-pound advantage, so Hunter knew — whether it be through film study or just pure, natural football instinct — he only had one option. Simply tackling Richardson wasn’t going to keep him out of the end zone. So Hunter lowered his shoulder and drove his body at the football, jarring it loose right before it crossed the goal line. The ball fell out and bounced into the end zone. After Colorado tried to recover the ball, it trickled out of the back of the end zone and out of bounds.

Game over. Colorado wins. Hunter didn’t catch the thrilling game-winning touchdown on the Hail Mary at the end of regulation. He didn’t score a touchdown in the game at all. But he won it for the Buffaloes.

Simple question: If you were having a college football draft, is there a single player in the sport you’d take over Hunter?

Simple answer: No.  

And that’s why he should be the Heisman Trophy favorite. 

We have seen players play offense and defense in college football’s past. Chris Gamble did it for Ohio State. Charles Woodson and Jabrill Peppers did it for Michigan. Champ Bailey did it for Georgia. There are other examples. 

We’ve seen two-way players before. What we haven’t seen is a two-way player who plays every single snap on both sides of the ball, one who so tangibly impacts the game on every single play whether he’s involved or not. Hunter is one of the faces of Colorado football. It’s because he’s one of the best college football players we’ve ever seen.

Hunter is Colorado’s best receiver and best defensive back. He’s one of a kind.

With all of that information, how should we view him in the context of the Heisman Trophy if we aren’t viewing the Buffaloes as a legitimate College Football Playoff contender?

Why are we so attached to the notion that the game’s most outstanding player has to be a quarterback or skill-position player on an already loaded roster?

I’m a Heisman voter and I’ll explain my process. When I cast my ballot at the end of the year, I take three things into consideration:

1. How good is the player?
2. How much does the player impact his team/program?
3. Can you tell the story of the season without including that player?

Some people disagree with this voting strategy. Andy Staples, my knowledgable co-host on Andy and Ari On3, thinks voting just literally casting your vote for what it says on the trophy: the most outstanding player. I think it’s a little deeper than that. We argue about it incessantly.

Good news: Travis Hunter meets all three of those requirements. When it comes to the talent he has, what he means for the team and his overall production, you simply cannot argue that he isn’t the most outstanding player in the country.

Notice what isn’t in my requirements: Wins and losses and statistics.

I’m a single Heisman voter. But there are more than 1,000 others. Many of them don’t cover college football full time. Most simply cast their vote for the quarterback/skill player with the most impressive statistics or the one who exists on the best team. Statistics, record, repeat. Around and around we go.

Colorado is going to lose more games this year. When it does, Hunter will be less of a conversation. Hunter will also unjustifiably be penalized because there are people out there who inherently don’t like Deion Sanders. Colorado, to many people, is the villain of the sport. There’s a reason Hunter is +1700 to win the Heisman right now, even after the play he made against Baylor.

But trust me, Hunter isn’t a villain.

He’s who we should be rooting for.

When he was a five-star prospect at Suwanee (Ga.) Collins Hill and committed to Florida State, I profiled him for The Athletic. Remember, before he shocked the world and flipped from Florida State to Jackson State on National Signing Day a few years ago, Hunter was committed to the Seminoles during a time it wasn’t cool to be committed to the Seminoles.

He carried a stuffed animal — a wolf — around with him everywhere he went. Why? Because he viewed himself as a Lone Wolf, someone who wasn’t just going to go to Alabama or Georgia or Ohio State and do what everyone else in his position does. He was an elite football player and he knew he could leave his mark on the sport regardless of where he went.

So he went to Jackson State. Then he followed Sanders to Colorado. And every single time he steps on the field, Hunter cashes the check his recruiting profile wrote. He racks up receptions and touchdowns. He changes the game on defense. He makes game-saving hits at the goal-line. He’s sensational.

Hunter does it all.

He’s the most outstanding player in college football and his story is remarkable.

That’s what the Heisman Trophy should be about.