Colorado's Travis Hunter injures shoulder vs. Kansas State

BOULDER, Colo. -- Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter exited the Buffaloes' 31-28 loss to No. 18 Kansas State on Saturday night because of a right shoulder injury and did not return.

Hunter, a Heisman Trophy contender, appeared to sustain the injury on a hit by Kansas State safety Daniel Cobbs after he hauled in a 14-yard reception during the second quarter. Hunter went to the locker room to have the injury evaluated and returned to the sideline early in the third quarter.

Coach Deion Sanders did not have an update on Hunter's injury afterward and said there was no discussion during the second half about having Hunter return to the game.

Hunter, a preseason All-American and a projected first-round NFL draft pick, leads the Buffaloes with 587 receiving yards and six touchdowns on 49 catches. He also has 17 tackles, three pass breakups and two interceptions on defense. He played 23 snaps on offense and 21 on defense in the first half, recording three catches for 26 yards plus one tackle.

Hunter was one of four Buffaloes wide receivers who went down because of an injury Saturday. Jimmy Horn Jr., the team's second-leading receiver with 347 yards this season, exited the game in the second quarter because of an unspecified injury. Omarion Miller put up a team-high 145 receiving yards on eight catches but also left because of an injury, as did Terrell Timmons Jr.

"Certainly, losing Travis and Jimmy and others was tremendous because they're a vital part of our team, a vital part of our identity," Sanders said. "They're a vital part of who we are. So that took a blow. That took a lot out of us."

Despite those setbacks, Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders threw for 388 yards and three touchdowns on 34-of-40 passing and led two fourth-quarter touchdown drives to rally the Buffaloes from a 10-point deficit and put them in position for the program's first home win over an AP Top 25 opponent since 2019.

Redshirt freshman backup Colton Hood replaced Hunter at cornerback and made a game-changing play late in the fourth quarter. Kansas State, leading by three with 4:07 left, opted to go for it on fourth-and-6 from Colorado's 31-yard line. Avery Johnson's pass was deflected and intercepted by Hood, who returned it 59 yards. Two plays later, Shedeur Sanders connected with LaJohntay Wester for an 11-yard touchdown to grab the lead.

Kansas State took the lead back in just three plays, with a 34-yard catch and run by DJ Giddens immediately followed by a 50-yard touchdown from Johnson to Jayce Brown. Giddens accounted for 220 yards from scrimmage.

Shedeur Sanders got one more chance to lead a winning drive but was stopped on fourth down when a deep pass to Will Sheppard fell incomplete and officials did not call defensive pass interference.

"I don't know what transpired at the end," Deion Sanders said. "It looked like it was pass interference to me. But it was tough. I didn't want to end that way."

Deion Sanders said he hoped to have Hunter and the Buffaloes' injured players back soon but would not rush them back. The 4-2 Buffaloes are on the road next Saturday to face 3-3 Arizona.

"Sometimes when you lose in life, you get your butt kicked and you just gotta take it," Deion Sanders said. "But sometimes you lose and you say, 'Dang, we should've won that. We should've had that.' And that was one of those type of games. That's not taking anything away from our opponent, because they played their butts off and they're in the locker room right now celebrating and having a good time. They deserve it. But for us, we just felt like we let that one slip away."