NEW YORK - After weeks of endless debates on who’s the better college football player than who and whether or not ‘snaps’ are a stat, Travis Hunter has officially quieted all of the naysayers and won the 2024 Heisman Trophy.
Colorado’s two-way superstar is the second Heisman winner in program history (Rashaan Salaam - 1994) and the fourth Buff to be named a finalist in New York City (Eric Bienemy - 1989, Darian Hagan - 1990). The only other time a Colorado player finished in the top five was all the way back in 1937 when Byron White received second-place honors for a historic season.
Hunter received 552 first-place votes and narrowly defeated Boise State's Ashton Jeanty by a margin of just 214 points (2,231 to 2,017), the smallest margin of victory since 2009. Jeanty won the fan vote, but that doesn't matter for the official winner.
Hunter was featured on 93.32% of ballots, almost 3% more than last year's winner, Jayden Daniels. This is the fourth-highest tally in the history of the Heisman. He also came in first place in five of the six regions polled across the U.S., with Jeanty defeating him in the Far West region, 357 points to 354.
Hunter’s 2024 season is one of the most decorated individual seasons in the history of college football. He has tallied 1,440 total snaps (1st in the nation), caught 92 passes (5th) for 1,152 yards (6th) and 14 touchdowns (2nd), and intercepted four passes (17th) while he broke up another 11 (8th) and recorded 31 tackles.
Hunter, who was the No. 1 recruit coming out of high school in 2022, has made an immense impact wherever he’s played. He shocked the nation by committing to Jackson State, an HBCU, over a traditional powerhouse as many top recruits would, and then shocked the nation again when he followed Coach Prime to Colorado.
Coach Prime is one of the reasons why Hunter is as successful as he is, as he was the only coach who was going to allow the two-way phenom to be himself and play on both sides of the ball in college.
“No other coach but Coach Prime,” Hunter said when asked if other college coaches mentioned him playing on both sides of the ball during his recruitment.
While Hunter is only a junior, he’s one of the most coveted prospects in the 2025 NFL Draft and will be going to the NFL next season. There has been lots of speculation on whether or not he will play on both sides of the ball next year, and there isn’t quite a clear answer on that topic yet.
Hunter’s legacy at Colorado has been cemented as a legendary one despite only playing two seasons. The contributions he made to the university on the field and off have been monumental (with all the awards he’s won, the school is going to need to build a new trophy room dedicated to Hunter after this season).
This moment isn’t the end for Hunter at Colorado. He still has one game left to further back up his Heisman campaign when the Buffaloes travel to San Antonio for the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 28. Both Hunter and Coach Prime have confirmed that he will be playing in that game. That game kicks off at 5:30 p.m. MT on ABC against the No. 17 BYU Cougars.
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