DJ McKinney looking forward to challenge of filling Travis Hunter’s shoes as CU Buffs’ top cornerback in 2025

Watching Travis Hunter win a plethora of awards last week, including the Heisman Trophy, has made an impact on his Colorado teammates.

Head coach Deion Sanders had Hunter and quarterback Shedeur Sanders stand in front of the team earlier this week, talked about the awards both of them won and pointed out that some of them could be next.

Cornerback DJ McKinney is taking the inspiration from Hunter and the message from Coach Prime to heart.

“Man, it was amazing, just seeing him walk into the after party with the Heisman Trophy,” said McKinney, who was one of several Buffs who made the trip to New York City to support Hunter when he won the Heisman on Dec. 14. “Man, it kind of made me realize, like, I could win an award, too, next year.

“I could see myself carrying the trophy out and then it’s just surreal seeing him because he’s so deserving of it. It’s amazing being a part of it.”

McKinney and the 20th-ranked Buffs (9-3) are focused on trying to beat No. 17 BYU (10-2) in to Valero Alamo Bowl on Saturday in San Antonio (5:30 p.m., ABC), but McKinney is already looking forward to trying to fill Hunter’s shoes.

Although not a two-way star like Hunter, McKinney played cornerback on the opposite side of Hunter all season. With Hunter heading to the NFL Draft after the Alamo Bowl, McKinney could be the Buffs’ top corner next year, with eyes on the Thorpe Award for the top defensive back in the country (about the only trophy Hunter didn’t win).

“I’m just ready for it,” McKinney said of stepping into the lead role next year. “I’m gonna attack it, make sure I’m on top of my game so I can have everybody else around me on top of theirs, just being a leader.”

Overshadowed a bit by Hunter, McKinney had a great year in his own right. He finished with 60 tackles, three tackles for loss, two interceptions and nine pass breakups.  He tied for fourth in the Big 12 in pass breakups and capped the regular season with an interception return for touchdown in a 52-0 win against Oklahoma State – his former team – on Nov. 29 at Folsom Field.

With opposing quarterbacks often avoiding Hunter, McKinney saw a lot more action, with his receivers targeted 67 times (compared to 38 for Hunter). McKinney gave up just 35 passes (52.2% completion rate) for 302 yards.

McKinney also racked up a lot of his tackles because of his willingness to help stop the run.

“That really came from peewee football,” he said of the pride he takes in run support. “I played middle linebacker. That was really my first defensive position. So I just carried that to now and I watched a lot of Ray Lewis when I was growing up. So tackling has always just been fun to me. I embrace it really.”

McKinney is also embracing one last opportunity this season to play with his current teammates and try to get even better as an individual going into the offseason.

This will be McKinney’s second career bowl game. As a redshirt freshman last year at Oklahoma State, he had two tackles and a pass breakup in the Cowboys’ 31-23 win against Texas A&M in the Texas Bowl.

“It’s just really going out there, playing with technique, playing with sound (skills), just working on our craft, really,” he said. “Preparing the young guys who are going to be out there with us and everything, just making sure everybody gets a good feel for the game.”

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