Deion Sanders addresses Travis Hunter’s injury status

Oct 12, 2024; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes wide receiver Travis Hunter (12) warms up before the game against the Kansas State Wildcats at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter has not been able to put in full games in each of the Buffaloes’ last two contests due to a shoulder injury. But Colorado head coach Deion Sanders believes his star player should be ready for a bigger load in Saturday’s contest against Cincinnati.

Sanders spoke with the media on Tuesday and was asked about Hunter. The second-year Colorado head coach said that Hunter is doing better and should see a bigger role in the Buffaloes’ upcoming game.

“Travis is better than last week,” Sanders said. “I think he’ll have more productivity because he’s feeling much better than last week. You can just tell with his little giddy-up and the way he goes about life. A little more pep in his step today. I think he did some conditioning today for sure to make sure he’s on point with his conditioning, because he never tires. And we want to keep that what it is.

“But I think he will certainly contribute a lot more than he did a week ago — because he’s healthy.”

Hunter has 51 catches for 604 yards and 6 touchdowns this season. He accumulated most of his stats during Colorado’s first five games. Over the last two games, he’s had just 5 catches for 43 yards as he’s left early due to his shoulder injury that was suffered in a loss to Kansas State. Hunter tried to play through that injury during Colorado’s 34-7 win over Arizona last weekend.

Colorado is 5-2 this season and will host fellow 5-2 squad Cincinnati at Folsom Field in Boulder on Saturday night. The Bearcats are coming off consecutive conference wins over UCF and Arizona State. Both teams are 3-1 in Big 12 play this season.