Football

Colorado’s 2024-25 Big 12 Athlete of the Year Nominees

The 2024-25 Big 12 Athlete of the Year nominees will be featured in alphabetical order by school starting Monday, July 14, through Wednesday, July 23, at 11 a.m. CT and 2 p.m. CT.

Each institution nominated one male and one female athlete of any classification who competed for their institution during the 2024-25 school year. Student-athletes were required to be in good academic standing and must have participated in a league-sponsored sport.

The 16 full-membership schools that competed during the 2024-25 academic year are eligible.

The winners will be announced Thursday, July 24. Stay tuned to Big12Sports.com and the league’s social media platforms to see the rest of the candidates.

This morning’s featured candidates are Colorado’s Travis Hunter and Jordan Nytes.

Colorado Male Athlete of the Year Candidate
Travis Hunter, Football
Jr., Suwanee, Ga.   
Accomplishments
  • Delivered one of the most decorated individual seasons in college football history, earning consensus National Player of the Year honors and becoming the Buffaloes’ second Heisman Trophy winner.
  • Recipient of the 2025 Bob Bowlsby Award, the Big 12’s highest individual honor, recognizing student-athletes who exemplify excellence and leadership on and off the field.
  • Named National Defensive Player of the Year (Bednarik, Lott IMPACT Trophy), became the first repeat winner of the Paul Hornung Award (most versatile player) and won the Biletnikoff Award as the nation’s top receiver.
  • A psychology major, Hunter was selected No. 2 overall in the 2025 NFL Draft and remains on track to graduate in December.
Colorado Female Athlete of the Year Candidate
Jordan Nytes, Soccer
Jr., Aurora, Colo.  
  • Became just the third goalkeeper in Colorado program history to earn All-America honors.
  • Named Big 12 Goalkeeper of the Year after earning five weekly Conference awards. Also honored as the Sportswomen of Colorado Collegiate Soccer Player of the Year.
  • Ranked second in the Big 12 and seventh nationally with 11 shutouts; set a school record with 583:33 consecutive shutout minutes.
  • Earned CSC Academic All-District honors and was named to the Big 12 All-Academic Team.
2024-25 Big 12 Athletes of the Year Nominees
Arizona - Colton Smith and Devyn Netz
Arizona State - Cam Skattebo and Kenzie Brown
Baylor - Nathaniel Ezekiel and Alexis Brown
BYU - James Corrigan and Lexy Halladay-Lowry
UCF - RJ Harvey and Hannah Lovejoy
Cincinnati - Kerrington Cross and Joleigh Crye
Colorado - Travis Hunter and Jordan Nytes