Colorado Cornerback Travis Hunter Lives on a Coverage Island

First Round Mock’s Rajvir Bal has studied four games this season of Colorado’s 2025 NFL Draft prospect Travis Hunter, and he has strong convictions about the position he feels he should play at the next level.

The biggest news story of this college football season is undoubtedly that of Coach Prime (Deion Sanders) and his Colorado Buffaloes. The second biggest story is Colorado’s all-world cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter in his quest to win the Heisman Trophy.

Colorado’s antics have been a staple of ESPN along with many other mainstream sports media outlets. While the coach and his son, quarterback Shedeur Sanders have been exhausting to watch off the field, Hunter has been in the headlines for his excellent play at cornerback (CB) and wide receiver (WR).

This scouting report focuses on his performance at the position of CB where he has posted 15 tackles (10 solo), 3 passes defended, and 2 interceptions through his first five games of the season.

Background

Hunter needs no introduction for a lot of football fans. He’s practically become a household name at this point in his career.

In the Winter of 2021, Hunter shocked the college football world by committing to Jackson State University over schools like Alabama, Florida State, and Georgia (per 247Sports). Hunter stated at that time he wanted to play under the former legendary NFL CB and Jackson State University (JSU) Head Coach Deion Sanders. When Sanders left JSU to coach Colorado, Hunter joined him. In college, he has played both WR and CB.

Here’s a look at his production in college.

2022: (Jackson State):

• 8 games, 20 tackles, 2 interceptions and 10 passes defended

2023:(Colorado)

• 9 games, 30 tackles (22 solo), 2 interceptions, and 5 passes defended

It’s also important to keep his durability in mind due to the fact he missed time last season due to a lacerated kidney he suffered during a game.

#12 Travis Hunter 6-foot-1, 185 pounds 
Rajvir Bal’s 2025 NFL Draft Grade: Early First-Round (I would select him)
Projected by 97.4% of the NFL Draft Community to be a first-round pick as of October 6, 2024 (nflmockdraftdatabase.com)

2024 game film reviewed: NDSU, Baylor, Colorado State, and Nebraska (click to view games watched to form this evaluation)

The Good

Hunter is sticky in pass coverage. He is a pro at mirroring his receiver. Left, right, forward, back, no matter which way the WR steps, Hunter is right in his hip pocket. This was especially apparent in Colorado’s game vs. Colorado State, when Hunter completely wiped out projected NFL draft pick WR Tory Horton from the game. Hunter has a unique ability to make the opposing team’s WR1 completely disappear. I am extremely excited to see how he fares against Arizona’s WR Tetairoa McMillan (projected first-round pick) on October 19th. Hunter’s excellent coverage ability is due to two traits: his instincts, and his ability to go into a second gear. Hunter is what I like to call “A born football player”. This means he has rare traits that one can only possess from birth. Offenses rarely fooled him, and he seems to be in sync with the offense’s game plan. It’s almost like he has the opposing team’s playbook. Additionally, although he isn’t a burner, he can turn up his downfield speed and shift into second gear. Hunter has a lot to love on film.

The Bad

He primarily plays in press-man coverage (lined up tight against the opposing receiver pre-snap and assigned to mirror him everywhere he goes). We have yet to see him in much zone coverage (assigned to cover and defend specific zones of the field instead of being locked up on a specific receiver), which makes me a bit weary as his NFL team will not scheme a defense around him like Colorado has. He’s also hesitant to tackle.

Final thoughts for now

My biggest piece of advice: Continue to stay out of all the off-the-field headlines taking place in Boulder.

Travis Hunter will be an excellent player in the NFL.

Rajvir Bal is a high school student from the Virginia area. He grew up a rabid Washington Redskins fan, attending more than 30 games, and has enjoyed the team’s high points and low points throughout his life. He plays varsity football and basketball. Rajvir has taken an interest in the NFL Draft since middle school when his team picked Montez Sweat and Dwayne Haskins in the first round. His favorite NFL player ever flips between Rob Gronkowski and Brett Favre, and his favorite athlete is LeBron James. He has been writing his own scouting reports since 2020, and is excited for the opportunities FirstRoundMock provides.