Strike 3: It’s been a crummy season thus far for the region’s college football teams. Bowl season isn’t likely to include any team that calls the Front Range home.
Alums, however, have been a different story.
The ongoing soap opera drama in Cleveland starring Shedeur Sanders notwithstanding, another former Colorado Buff and an ex-CSU Ram are both doing pretty well for themselves so far, thank you. No telling what the NFL future is going to be for both CSU product Tory Horton or CU’s Heisman winner, Travis Hunter, but both are going to be fun to watch.
As fans, we never got to see an entire Horton vs. Hunter game while they were here. Both times the Rams and the Buffs met while these two electric stars were competing, injuries kept one of them off the field for most of the contest. First, in 2023, Hunter was injured in the first half after a late hit against CSU, and in 2024, Horton missed all but the first moments of the CU game with a knee injury that cost him the rest of his final season in Fort Collins.
When healthy, Horton absolutely lit up the Buffs in the first game at Folsom Field, catching 16 passes for 133 yards and a touchdown, and even throwing a TD pass. He also returned two punts for a total of 21 yards. A year later, he caught just two passes for 24 yards before departing the 2024 game for good.
That following season, Hunter added to his Heisman resume at Canvas Stadium with 12 catches for 100 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while playing defense, too. The season before, he caught just two passes for 21 yards in CU’s double overtime win before being injured.
If you watched one or both play in college while healthy, you shouldn’t be surprised by what each has already done just five games into their respective NFL careers. And there’s a lot more to come.
After rehabbing from his knee injury (he ran a 4.4 40-yard dash at roughly 80% in front of pro scouts) Horton fell to the third round where he was tabbed by the Seattle Seahawks. That pick looks like a steal at the moment. Very early on, Horton has become a key player on offense and special teams. He’s already taken a punt back for a touchdown against New Orleans, and has added three more TD catches for the Seahawks. Right now, the former Ram is on pace to catch 13 TD passes in his rookie season. Seattle offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak said that as a rookie, Horton reminds him of a rookie he coached in Minnesota named Justin Jefferson.
The accolades that came to Hunter during his final season in Boulder are too numerous to list of course. He was the second overall pick in the draft by Jacksonville. The only question that came with him was whether or not he could play both offense and defense as a pro. Thus far, the Jaguars have let him play both cornerback (he had 25 snaps at corner in the Jags last game) and receiver (39 snaps), while trying to limit his snaps on both sides of the ball for obvious reasons.
Playing both ways (for now) is going to hurt Hunters statistics. There are already a lot of folks in Jags country complaining that he’s been under-utilized on offense. He’s yet to catch a touchdown pass, although he has made 16 catches for 182 yards through five games. What can’t be hurt is Hunter’s skill set, which includes a pair of remarkable hands. He put those on display again on national TV Monday night against the Kansas City Chiefs. His spectacular 44-yard reception from Trevor Lawrence helped the Jags upset KC (and make Broncos fans very happy.)
As it is with most players, staying healthy will be the key to longevity and big time success for both players. In that regard, the edge at achieving long-term stardom would seem to go to Horton at the moment, given his positions and the opportunities he will get with the ball in his hands. That is, unless Jacksonville can somehow force themselves to do what’s best for the young player and make Hunter a full time pass catcher too. If that happens, he could also have a long and sensational NFL career.
With both currently 100% healthy, they’ll meet for the third time this Sunday when the Seahawks travel to Jacksonville. Since the Broncos play an early game in London, perhaps we’ll finally get to watch both play a full game – and even see Hunter guard Horton some – and be able to enjoy the fireworks.
