Travis Hunter Heisman hype has oddsmakers on alert

Colorado's Travis Hunter had a spectacular debut against defending national runner-up TCU, so good in fact that he has the eyes of the Heisman Trophy voters and oddsmakers.

Hunter opened the season off the board for Heisman odds. After Saturday's performance, he and Colorado are a factor.

Well, let's just add that to the resume so far of Colorado football under Deion Sanders, who has been getting a lot of press as of late, including some from those who feel that Sanders got "lucky" in his first game.

In the case of Hunter, that was no fluke. The man showed his versatility and his ability to play both sides of the ball, in scorching Texas heat nonetheless. Over 100 yards receiving and a diving interception as a cornerback to prevent a TCU touchdown after the Horned Frogs drove over 90 yards? Yeah, that's pure excellence.

Travis Hunter has the Heisman Trophy voters on notice, and he could win the award if he keeps playing like this.

It's only one game, and Colorado has a long way to go if they really want to start keeping the receipts, but what they did against TCU has to be commended, even if the Horned Frogs aren't the same team that played for the national title a year ago.

Hunter has a prime opportunity this season to make more noise including against fellow Heisman hopeful Caleb Williams and USC. A dominant performance against the Trojans might be enough to convince the voters. Also, if Hunter does well against Oregon in a few weeks, not only can he save the Duck mascot from doing too many pushups, but he can also solidify the fact that he can compete with the big dogs in the Pac-12 and possibly around the nation.

That's looking too far ahead. Colorado has a date with Matt Rhule and the Nebraska Cornhuskers this week, and given how they played against TCU despite the win, the Buffaloes defense and Hunter have a lot of work to do. So far though, he's gotten off to a fast start and has the oddsmakers on notice.