Travis Hunter’s Heisman Win: Cam Newton Says Ashton Jeanty Got ‘Christian McCaffrey-ied’

It’s been a week since the award ceremony, but the Heisman Trophy debate rages on. The last time people were this shocked by a Heisman snub was in 2015, when Derrick Henry was given the coveted college football trophy over Christian McCaffrey, who had better stats. This time around, Travis Hunter’s win over Ashton Jeanty has led to a similar uproar.

And Cam Newton thinks the same factor was at play in both Jeanty’s snub now, and CMC’s miss nine years back. Media visibility, according to Newton, was the culprit.

Henry, who played for Alabama back then, received more prime-time coverage and media time than Stanford’s McCaffrey. In the Jeanty-Hunter media clout tussle, the Colorado Buffs star was the clear winner right through the season. This across both traditional as well as social media.

“Ashton Jeanty got CMC-ed. The same thing happened to Christian McCaffrey.” said Newton.“Christian McCaffrey had better stats than Derrick Henry that year. The difference was that Henry played for the University of Alabama, which garners more TV time. By the time Ashton Jeanty was done playing, most people were in their REM sleep.”

CMC had a record-setting performance in 2015 with his all-purpose yards. He not only rushed for 2,019 yards but also received for 645, something Henry lacked (he didn’t tally a single touchdown there). But in rushing, Henry scored a total of 28 touchdowns, which powered Alabama into the post-season, and bolstered his Heisman case. And, of course, there was the spotlight factor.

This year, the Colorado Buffaloes also had more eyeballs on them thanks to Deion Sanders. And Hunter became a media darling due to his close relationship with Coach Prime. Of course, his two-way talent had its own sway.

Boise State, on the other hand, as Newton pointed out, is just not on the same level when it comes to ruling the airwaves. However, Jeanty had made a huge difference for the Broncos this season.

Opposing defenses were continuously pointing the barrel at him, and still he managed to excel in each and every game. Jeanty delivered exceptional performances, registering one of the most statistically impressive offensive seasons in college football history. He led the season in both rushing yards (2,497) and touchdowns (29), as well as rush yards per game (192.1).

Anyone who watched a Broncos game this season would readily agree that they would have not reached the College Football Playoff without Jeanty in the backfield. The only problem, it seems, is that not many people were watching.