A consensus top-three pick in this year’s draft, Travis Hunter will enter the league as one of the most highly touted talents in recent memory. As draft day continues to draw near, the 2024 Heisman trophy winner has some lofty ambitions that he has set out for himself prior to even starting his professional career.
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On the latest episode of the aptly titled Travis Hunter Show, the AP College Football Player of the Year sat down to detail his long-term goals for the NFL.
While some simply strive to make it to the professional level, others hope to achieve greatness. And if Hunter’s goals and aspirations are any indication, he’s the latter.
Upon being asked what his “real” goal is, the 21-year-old didn’t even draw a breath as he said:
“I need that gold jacket, whatever it’s going to take. I got to outdo Coach Prime. So, I’ve got a Heisman trophy, he don’t… I need to get that gold jacket and a Super Bowl, and I get to outdo him.”
While countless players have set forth that very same set of expectations for themselves, few were able to deliver, and even fewer were as capable of a player as Hunter is.
Having officially been slotted to work out as a DB at the 2025 NFL Combine, Hunter could also make history by becoming the first player at the position to ever be selected with the first overall pick in the NFL Draft. But what would it take for him to “outdo” his former coach?
Looking back at Deion Sanders’ NFL career
Remembered for being one of the most dynamic athletes in recent history, “Neon Deion” certainly lit up his fair share of defenders throughout his time in the league. Collecting 53 interceptions throughout his 14 years in the league, Sanders’s nine career pick-sixes notched the fifth most in NFL history.
Similarly enough, he also famously played at the WR position in 1996. Averaging 13.2 yards per reception, while also totaling two interceptions at the RCB position and 36 receptions as a WR, there may be more parallels between Hunter and Sanders than some may realize.
Regardless of his potential, it’s safe to say that the 2024 Biletnikoff winner will have his work cut out for him in his attempt to usurp the man who garnered the moniker of Prime Time. His historic usage rate and consistency on both sides of the ball may have gotten him to the dance, but Hunter can no longer afford to rest on those laurels.
Then again, if there was ever someone who could replicate if not outshine Sanders’ body of work, it would be the player who has been heralded as the best athlete in recent history.
For instance, Champ Bailey, the hall-of-fame DB who sits just behind Sanders in career interceptions with 52 picks of his own, felt the need to proclaim to ESPN that Hunter is “…doing things you probably won’t see again.”
With two of the game’s greatest secondary defenders firmly in his corner, there are more than enough credible parties who are trying to warn the public about the danger to be found within Hunter’s skillset. The only thing that can prevent Hunter from achieving his own Hall of Fame hopes is himself.
