Travis Hunter, Shedeur Sanders, Julian Lewis: A look at Deion Sanders' biggest recruiting wins

Andrew Nemec | Mar 4, 2025

Four-star offensive tackle Carde Smith poses with Colorado head coach Deion Sanders during a September visit /

Colorado Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders has quickly built a reputation as a man who can pull off major recruiting surprises.

That prowess is on full display during preparations for the 2025 NFL Draft, as both Travis Hunter and Shedeur Sanders are in contention to be the No. 1 overall pick.

But they are hardly the only two big-time recruiting wins for Sanders.

Here's a look at PrimeTime's biggest victories on the recruiting trail:

1. Travis Hunter, Collins Hill; Jackson State (2022)

Travis Hunter makes an incredible catch for Collins Hill High School (Georgia) against Graham-Kapowsin (Washington). / Jann Hendry

Coming out of Collins Hill (Georgia) in the class of 2022 Travis Hunter was viewed as a generational talent and the top recruit in the country.

The 6-foot-1, 165-pound athlete was considered the nation's No. 1 wide receiver and No. 1 cornerback - a lofty evaluation that he somehow managed to live up to in college.

Committed to Florida State originally, Hunter flipped to Deion Sanders and FCS Jackson State on the first day of the early signing period - one of the most memorable and shocking college announcements in history.

"This is the biggest signing day moment in the history of college football," said Steve Wiltfong, then-director of national recruiting for 247Sports.

It also put the college football world on notice.

Coach Prime wasn't messing around on the recruiting trail and was willing to rip the heart out of his alma mater to do it.

After one season at Jackson State, Hunter followed Sanders to Colorado, where he would go on to win the 2024 Heisman Trophy, 2024 Walter Camp Award, AP College Football Player of the Year and both the Bednarik Award (best defensive player) and Biletnikoff Award (best wide receiver).

He is considered, unquestionably, the best two-way college football player in modern history and has earned praise as one of the top 10 college football players of all time.

2. Shedeur Sanders, Trinity Christian; Jackson State (2021)

Trinity Christian's Shedeur Sanders (2) throws a pass during a high school football game. / Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Deion Sanders' second-biggest recruiting win of his career was also his easiest.

Trinity Christian (Texas) four-star quarterback Shedeur Sanders, Deion's son, was a four-star recruit in the class of 2021 with more than 20 major scholarship offers.

Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Oregon, Tennessee and others all offered Sanders, but he chose to follow his dad to Jackson State.

Initially, skeptics wondered if the Sanders family dynasty was simply a novelty or if they could actually make a major difference in college football.

Turns out, Sanders and his sons changed the game.

Sanders won the Jerry Rice Award, given to the top freshman in FCS football, then won the Deacon Jones Trophy as a sophomore, given annually to the top player in among HBCUs.

After two years, Sanders transferred to Colorado to follow his dad, where he established himself as one of the top quarterbacks in college football, earning the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award as a senior. The award is given to the nation's top quarterback who best exemplifies character, scholastic and athletic achievement

Sanders is in the discussion to be the No. 1 pick in this year's NFL draft.

3. Cormani McClain, Lakeland; Colorado (2023)

Lakeland (7) Cormani McClain runs back an interception against Osceola in December 2022. / Ernst Peters/The Ledger / USA TODAY NETWORK

A year after landing Travis Hunter, the college football world was on high alert for Sanders to land another marquee recruit.

And for the second consecutive recruiting cycle, Sanders' eyes were transfixed on the nation's No. 1 cornerback.

This time it was Lakeland's Cormani McClain.

Although he was committed to Miami during the early signing period, the 6-foot-2, 175-pound defensive back did not sign and strongly considered Alabama, Colorado, Florida and Miami until mid-January.

By then, many had begun speculating that McClain would be Sanders' annual surprise.

"I play DB and Coach Prime is the best DB. I wanna be in the same shoes, same predicament, gold jacket, everything," McClain told 247Sports. "Get coached by the best DB. Why not?"

After a tough season at Colorado, McClain transferred to Florida - with a war of words brewing between Sanders and McClain about his attitude and work ethic vs. his treatment while in Boulder.

While McClain's time with Sanders ended up being a disappointment, it showed the recruiting world that Travis Hunter's commitment wasn't a fluke.

Coach Prime was going to be a player in the recruiting game - and he was going to land five-star talent wherever he went.

4. Jordan Seaton, IMG Academy; Colorado (2024)

IMG's Jordan Seaton (77) holds off a defender on August18, 2023. / Denny Simmons / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK

After one year at Colorado, Sanders had plenty of talent at the skill positions, but publicly lamented that he needed to upgrade his offensive line.

Sure, the transfer portal could offer some immediate help, but in the 2024 cycle it became clear that Coach Prime was aiming at a five-star offensive line addition.

Enter IMG Academy (Florida) five-star recruit Jordan Seaton.

The 6-foot-5, 287-pound lineman was rated the top tackle in the country and a top-20 recruit overall - with scholarship offers from 33 major programs.

Seaton committed to Colorado over Alabama, Maryland, Ohio State and Tennessee in December.

But this time it was Sanders who nearly lost a marquee recruit with a late surprise.

Seaton elected not to sign in National Letter of Intent on the first day of the early signing period in December 2023 - with rumors swirling that he was close to flipping to Maryland.

After two tense days, Seaton finally put pen to paper, officially locking in a future in Boulder.

It all proved to be worth it.

Seaton started all 13 games as a true freshman and allowed just one sack on his way to earning Freshman All-American honors.

He is already projected as a future NFL first-round draft pick, potentially carrying on a tradition that appears destined to be set this April by Travis Hunter and Shedeur Sanders.

5. Julian Lewis, Carrollton; Colorado (2025)

Shedeur Sanders hands the proverbial keys to Carrollton (Georgia) five-star quarterback Julian Lewis during his official visit to Boulder / Courtesy of Julian Lewis

For the first time in his coaching tenure, Coach Prime will hand the keys of his offense to a quarterback that doesn't have the name "Sanders" printed across the back of his jersey.

So, what was his solution?

Carrollton (Georgia) five-star quarterback Julian Lewis was originally the top recruit in the class of 2026, but reclassified into 2025.

He was also committed to the USC Trojans by August 2023 and remained so for more than a year.

But despite a long-term commitment, Lewis continued to talk to other schools and take visits.

Colorado, Georgia, Indiana and others all continued to try to lure the bluechip signal-caller away from Lincoln Riley.

But no one rolled out the red carpet quite like the Buffs.

During Lewis' official visit, the Boulder Theatre welcomed him to town, fans waited with signs and chanted his name, the local burger joint named a burger after him and he was part of a photo shoot in which Shedeur Sanders literally passed him the keys.

>>> Top five moments of Julian Lewis' official visit to Colorado

Still, Lewis remained committed to USC... until November 2024.

Immediately, rumors swirled that Coach Prime had, once again, pulled off a five-star surprise.

But Lewis, the nation's No. 12 prospect, didn't make it official until later in November when he announced his decision on "The Pat McAfee Show."

It's possible Lewis could climb up this list.

But it'd be hard to climb to the very top.

Travis Hunter delivered arguably the most shocking moment in college football signing day history and then backed it up by winning a Heisman Trophy.

Shedeur Sanders helped his dad's viral coaching career get off to a strong start by manning - no pun intended - the helm for multiple seasons as a likely future NFL first-round draft pick.

"Hunter to Jackson State" and "Sanders coaching Sanders" are iconic pieces of modern college football history.

Even Cormani McClain's commitment made an impact, showing fans that Hunter's commitment wasn't a fluke or a one-time shocker.

It signaled that Coach Prime was here to stay.

Jordan Seaton's commitment showed Sanders could quickly patch holes in his program and wasn't going to rely too heavily on his sons and his defensive back reputation.

But could Lewis thrive and climb to No. 3?

It's very possible.

Of course, that is if Sanders doesn't continue adding to the list with more five-star recruits in the future.

And it would be silly to bet against him.

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