Travis Hunter has reciprocated his gratitude to Colorado by donating money to CU’s NIL collective, expressing public love for the program, and incorporating the Colorado name in his NFL endorsements. Still, his loyalty to the program is being publicly questioned, and now, a close family friend of Deion Sanders is stepping in to fight back.

“That is NOT correct!!” Deion Sanders’ family friend, Boogie Knight, replied to the CU fan on X. “I just left Trav’s house last week. Y’all gotta stop with the foolishness. The man is going through a recovery process, and right now, being at CU isn’t in the cards for him. When it’s right, he’ll be there. But this ain’t the time for that. He got big fish to fry.”

Hunter’s NFL career didn’t get off to a good start. The Jaguars mostly utilized their 2nd overall pick offensively. However, in October last year, the former Colorado star tore his right knee’s lateral collateral ligament (LCL) in a non-contact incident during practice. The Jaguars initially placed him on injured reserve with hopes of a late-season comeback.

But the injury turned out to be serious, and Travis Hunter had to be sidelined for the whole season. He eventually went through surgery in November with a recovery timeline of around 6 months. Because of the recovery process, Hunter won’t be able to participate in OTAs and the Jaguars’ minicamp but will eventually return in late summer.

“He’ll be, for all intents and purposes, a limited participant through the offseason program with eyes on [a] return to play at full tick in training camp,” Jaguars GM James Gladstone said.

With Hunter focusing on his recovery and trying everything to make a swift comeback, promoting Colorado naturally would have taken a back seat. Yet Knight pointed out that Travis still tries to stay in touch with Deion Sanders and other coaches by phone and FaceTime. But the fan wasn’t convinced and highlighted other former CU players, like Shedeur, Lajontay, and Jimmy Horn Jr., who still find time to promote Colorado despite being busy in the NFL.

“That call is him supporting CU,” Boog replied to the fan’s response. “No one you named outside of him is married with a child, and couldn’t finish their rookie season healthy. Trav isn’t the same man he was 2 years ago. He’s grown, and he’s happily living. He’ll go back when it’s time for him to go back.”

Travis Hunter married his girlfriend, Leanna Lee, in May 2025, and the couple welcomed their first child in August last year. Now, Travis has taken on fatherly responsibilities, and the pressure of the rookie contract hangs over his head.

Travis Hunter’s selfless love for Colorado

“Did you know he receives no NIL (money) from the collective?” Deion Sanders Jr said. “He’s one of the biggest donors to the collective, meaning he’s paying a lot of others’ NIL on this team. And he’s paying at least 10-15 guys’ NIL on the team. He’s donating his own money.”

Although Shedeur made it to Colorado to watch CU’s spring practices this year, Travis didn’t. But that was only because Shedeur is healthy; he is the presumed QB1 in Cleveland this year and was the starter last year, putting in decent performances. As for Hunter, despite the looming recovery process, the former Buffs star is doing little things he can to promote Colorado.

A few months ago, Travis Hunter posted a photo with Heisman winner Baker Mayfield, wearing the CU jersey and proudly showcasing it on social media. He also made an ad for Nissan wearing his #12 jersey that also featured CU’s mascot. For now, though, Travis is keeping everything low-key and, understandably, preparing for a roaring comeback.

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