Colorado Buffaloes two-way star Travis Hunter put on a show in his debut for the program last Saturday, playing an integral role in the Buffs upsetting the TCU Horned Frogs in a 45-42 track meet. Game-breaking catches on offense, ridiculous interceptions on defense, the former No. 1 ranked recruit did it all in a game where he was on the field for over 120 snaps. Hunter finished the day with 11 receptions for 119 yards on offense and three tackles with an interception on defense.
Hunter’s dominance as both a wide receiver and defensive back has been the talk of the college football world for the past week and some have gone as far as to drawing comparisons between him and another two-way star in Shohei Ohtani. He immediately shot up the Heisman Trophy odds board and currently has +2500 odds to win the award at DraftKings Sportsbook. We could be on the cusp of one of the more remarkable individual seasons in recent college football memory and for some perspective of how good he can be, we need to look at some stars who have walked in his show.
The most notable two-way college football star in the last 30 years is Charles Woodson, who won the Heisman Trophy over Peyton Manning in 1997 while helping lead Michigan to a national title. During his Heisman campaign, the future Pro Football Hall of Famer recorded 43 tackles and seven interceptions on defense, 11 receptions for 231 yards on offense, and tacked on a punt return touchdown on special teams for good measure. One year later in 1998, another future Hall of Famer in Champ Bailey had arguably an even more impressive season than Woodson. In his junior season at Georgia, he hauled in 47 receptions for 744 yards, and five touchdowns on offense while recording 52 tackles, seven pass breakups, and three interceptions on defense. Just a handful of years later in 2002, Chris Gamble showed out as a sophomore for Ohio State during their BCS national championship season. He hauled in 31 receptions for 499 yards on offense and recorded 24 tackles, four interceptions, and a touchdown for the Buckeyes on defense.
Those incredible seasons are benchmarks that Hunter can strive for but what are some records he can break in the process? For time’s sake, we’ll stick with Colorado records that the rising star can conquer this fall.
Colorado’s single-season record for receptions is 106, set by Nelson Spruce in 2014. He also set the single-season receiving touchdown record that season as well with 12. A year earlier in 2013, Spruce’s teammate Paul Richardson set the school’s single-season receiving yard record at 1,343 yards. On defense, three different players have tied the school’s single-season interception record at seven while in 2016, Akheloo Witherspoon set the school record for most passes defended at 19.
As long as he stays healthy, Colorado games will be fascinating all season just for the factor of following Hunter’s whereabouts on both sides of the ball. If he makes the show he put on in Week 1 a regular occurrence, he’ll undoubtedly be in New York City for the Heisman Trophy ceremony.