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The Colorado football program’s recent decision to retire Travis Hunter’s No. 12 and Sheduer Sanders’ No. 2 -jerseys were met with some criticism. Both former Colorado players were officially retired earlier this month during a special ceremony at Buffaloe’s Spring Game.
Only four other players in Colorado football history have been honored via a Jersey retirement. Colorado football dates back to 135 years. The criteria used for Sanders’ and Hunter’s respective retirement differ from what other former players were facing.
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Skyeseur Sanders and Travis Hunter (IMagn)
In the 1990s, a student athlete had to meet a graduate requirement before a Jersey retirement. A spokesman for the athletic department confirmed to USA Today Sports that both Sanders and Hunter were not yet trained at the time of the retirement ceremony on April 19.
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School officials also clarified that the graduation criterion was never an official policy and said it was previously “preference for an academic adviser.”
(LR) Shedeur Sanders #2 and Travis Hunter #12 from the University of Colorado Buffaloes talk with the media at Zouk Nightclub at Resorts World Las Vegas on July 21, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Louis Grasse/Getty Images)
Officials added that the administration of the Athletic Department together with the main coach can take Jersey retirement decisions at its sole discretion.
Michael Jones is one of the latest previous Colorado football players who speak as falling from the controversial decision time. Jones suggested that his former university directly lack a Jersey pension process.
Shedeur Sanders, Left and Travis Hunter, to the right, respond to their Jersey pensions under Colorado’s NCAA College Football Spring Game, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in Boulder, Colo. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)
“For them not to have a process of retiring a number is asinine for an institution like Colorado,” Jones told USA Today Sports. “It’s just totally asinine.”
Darian Hagan, who played quarterback in Colorado, told the business that the controversial retirement decision left him “flabbergasted.” Hagan did not discredit Sanders’ or Hunter’s contribution to Colorado, but instead expressed his belief that he should receive the honor “one day.”
“We were always told there was a wait,” Hagan told the business. “There was a policy.
Sanders and Hunter played their last match in a Colorado uniform at the end of December in the Alamo Bowl. Hunter was the second total election in 2025 NFL draft. Sanders’ unexpected fall in last week’s draft was closely monitored over the sports world and beyond. Sanders was eventually elected in the fifth round and will begin his NFL career with Cleveland Browns.
Colorado won the national championship in 1990. Jones pointed to the history of the program and suggested that Sanders and Hunter be able to effectively skip the Jersey retirement line contributed to “a serious deletion of our football heritage,” he wrote in a social media post.
Elsewhere, Colorado has strict policies in place for its athletics Hall of Fame.
If a player is to be considered justified, the athletes must be at least 10 years removed from their playing career in Boulder. Also, the individual must no longer compete in any professional sport league per year. Nomination documentation.
