It is almost always a quarterback, now more than ever.

But what if this year, rather than the game’s most important position, it was a player who can play two positions equally well – better than well in fact – who was the first overall pick in the NFL Draft.

Travis Hunter has enjoyed a stunning start to the college football season

In a draft where there isn’t a consensus number one prospect – nyet – it has left the door ajar for the best player available to be taken first overall. 

Step forward, Travis Hunter.

In this year’s class he might be the BPA, and it might not be particularly close.

History tells us that more likely than not a quarterback will go first overall – eight out of the last ten number one draft picks have all been quarterbacks.

From Jameis Winston, Jared Goff, Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray and Joe Burrow to most recently Trevor Lawrence, Bryce Young and Caleb Williams. It’s a quarterback’s game.

Through two weeks of the NFL season, and how dreadful the Carolina Panthers have looked, they have already benched last year’s number one pick in Young.

They look like they might be in the market for a quarterback – especially if they have the first overall pick again.

But what happens when there isn’t a Burrow or Lawrence on the board?

Insert a generational defensive talent – Myles Garrett. Or insert an athletic phenom with traits but little production – Travon Walker.

In this year’s case, insert Travis Hunter.

Hunter has five touchdowns to his name already this season

No offense to Carson Beck, Quinn Ewers and coincidentally enough, Hunter’s teammate, Shedeur Sanders, but they’re no John Elway or Andrew Luck.

All very talented, but no sure thing. 

No one is, but Hunter might be the closest thing in this year’s draft. 

The No. 1 overall prospect in the Class of 2022 burst onto the scene last season after following head coach Deion Sanders and quarterback Shedeur from Jackson State to Boulder, Colorado.

The All-American talent arrived as a shutdown cornerback, while moonlighting as an electric wide receiver. Excelling at both. Fairly easily.

Less than a month into the season, the two-way phenom has picked up exactly where he left off last year.

Through three games, Hunter has 30 receptions for 342 yards and five touchdowns, while also recording an interception and two passes defensed. He has played 177 snaps on offense and 202 snaps on defense.

In Colorado’s win over rival Colorado State last week, Hunter played 123 snaps, out of 138. A workload that is unheard of in today’s game.

In 2023, Hunter played 1,102 snaps – more than any other FBS player – which included missing 3.5 games. 

Hunter is a two-way talent that the college football world hasn’t truly seen since Charles Woodson resided in Ann Arbor, lifting the Heisman Trophy at Michigan in 1997. 

Not only is Hunter in the thick of the Heisman race heading into week four of the season, but he is also very much in the discussion for being the first player taken in next spring’s NFL Draft.

Scouts are projecting his ceiling to be higher as a cornerback at the next level because of his physical tools, elite ball skills and football IQ, but there’s no reason he can’t excel at both.

Or at the very least be elite on one side of the ball, while still very good on the other.

All that, for the price of one? That alone is worthy of the number one overall pick, especially in a draft where there isn’t that generational talent at quarterback.

The generational talent in this year’s draft is lining up on both sides of the ball and can be found wearing number 12 in Boulder, Colorado.

The NFL is a whole different beast than the college game, so while extremely rare to play both sides of the ball, it has been done before.

Just ask Hunter’s head coach.

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