Numerous news media outlets reported that Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter had graduated from the University of Colorado on May 8, citing social media posts from CU that showed him attending the graduation ceremony and saying he “GOT THAT DEGREE!”
Another CU football post showed Hunter in a video saying he “graduated in three years.”
What actually happened is a little more complicated. He is not scheduled to graduate until December after applying to graduate in fall 2025, according to an athletics department spokesman.
He attended the May 8 graduation ceremony in Boulder anyway to be able to experience it now, before he begins his pro football career as the No. 2 overall draft pick for the Jacksonville Jaguars, according to the school.
“Travis walked in (the May 8) commencement ceremony and will graduate with a degree in anthropology in December 2025,” said Steve Hurlbert, the athletics department spokesman. “He’s likely to be a little busy that time of year and he really wanted to experience all the pomp and circumstance.”
Hurlbert also noted Hunter has a 3.9 grade-point average.
How common is ‘walking early’ before graduation?
It is not that unusual. It’s allowed at other schools, too, for different reasons, such as wanting to participate in the graduation ceremony with your friends even if you need to complete a few more classes to get your degree.
Actually graduating is still different than attending the commencement ceremony because it requires students to meet all their degree requirements. At CU, students are required to apply to graduate for the semester in which they’ll “officially and successfully” complete all requirements for the degrees and majors they’re pursuing, according to the university website.
In Hunter’s case, Hurlbert said he applied to graduate in the fall of 2025, which ends in December. It’s not clear what requirements Hunter has left to complete. Hurlbert declined to say, citing privacy law covering academic records. A message seeking comment from Hunter through his agent was not returned.
This explains why Hunter was not listed among the thousands of degree candidates in the CU commencement program for May 8 even though he attended the ceremony.
“CU had 67 student-athletes graduate last week and 103 student-athletes walked in the ceremony, so it’s not unusual at all for student-athletes who have graduated last winter or will graduate in August or next December to participate in spring commencement because it’s such a great experience,” Hurlbert said.
Why did CU’s social media indicate he got his degree?
The posts from CU football’s social accounts led to widespread reports that Hunter had in fact graduated, including the post that said he “GOT THAT DEGREE!” It showed Hunter in graduation attire with friends saying, “Boys out here graduating man.”
“It was just a social media staffer who didn’t know that (Hunter) was just walking” in the ceremony, Hurlbert said.
Hunter himself seemed to confirm it in another CU post when he said he had “graduated in three years.”
That would be approximate if he only has a small amount of degree requirements to complete. He enrolled at Jackson State in January 2022 after graduating high school, according to The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Mississippi. He transferred to Colorado in January 2023 after head coach Deion Sanders made the same move.
After previously being listed as a psychology major at CU, he chose to major in anthropology, the study of humanity. In January, he was named the Division I Academic All-American Team Member of the Year.
“I’m an anthropology major, and I really enjoy learning about different cultures and how they interact with one another,” Hunter said in an email interview with USA TODAY Sports last year. “Being able to learn about these cultures and skills is incredibly beneficial to me even when playing football. I have the opportunity to learn the importance of accepting and interacting with other people and playing with other people despite their cultural or ethnic makeup.”
Shilo Sanders earns master’s degree from Colorado
Among the 67 student-athletes who graduated in May, the university said Deion Sanders’ safety son, Shilo Sanders, earned a master’s degree in organizational leadership after previously earning an undergraduate degree at Jackson State. He is now with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent.
Sanders’ youngest son, Shedeur Sanders, the former Colorado quarterback, said on his YouTube show in January that he hoped to graduate at the end of the past semester in May. He was selected in the fifth round by the Cleveland Browns in the NFL draft in April. The university said he is on track to graduate later this year but has not applied for graduation yet.
Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com