Since the Jacksonville Jaguars drafted Travis Hunter second overall, he's gotten the spotlight on and off the field. After he flew from Colorado to attend rookie minicamp, his interaction with Sandy Hawkins Combs on the flight home went viral. And a few days later, she spoke in detail about the whole thing.
Hawkins Combs made an appearance on Good Morning Football and confessed that she didn't recognize who he was at first and asked him who he was after she saw lots of people congratulating him for being the second overall pick in this past draft.
"Once I boarded, I found my seat, and I say, excuse me this much. He said okay. And he stood up, and I started to put my bag in the overhead compartment," Hawkins Combs told host Kay Adams. "And he said, 'I got that, ma'am, go ahead and sit down. I got it.' And I started smiling, and I sat down. And by the time I sat down, everybody else started boarding, and people would stop by and say congratulations. Man, congratulations. A good job, man, good job. I turned to him, and I looked at him, and I said, 'May I ask you a question?' He said, 'Yes, ma'am.' I said."
Hawkins Combs continued, "Am I sitting next to he smiled. And I said, really am I sitting next to and he kept smiling. I said, 'Are you a professional athlete or something?' And he just kept smiling. And they were Jaguar pants, I said, a professional athlete, a professional football player, and he looked at me and smiled, just got drafted. He said, 'Yes, ma'am.' And my name is Travis,' and it still didn't register who he was. Okay. So I turned around and waited for us to lift off, and I said, 'May I take a selfie with you? Sure, ma'am."
Hawkins Combs still didn't know who Hunter was, so she sent it to her son. Like most people, he didn't believe her at first, but they then FaceTimed, and his skepticism turned into excitement.
"So I held my phone up. Really didn't know how to take one. He said, Let me. And he took it and cleaned it off. I say, you doing just what my boys do. They always clean it off for me. And then he took the selfie, and I started smiling, and I said, 'I'm gonna send this to my son.' So I sent it to my son, and Charles immediately answered. He never immediately answers. 'Mama, how are you sitting next to Travis Hunter?' I said, I'm in first class. He said, I don't believe you. I'm gonna do FaceTime. He immediately FaceTimed. So I said, Travis, my son wanna to say hello to you. He don't believe I'm sitting next to you," Hawkins Combs said.
The whole thing is worth a listen. Here's the full clip where Hawkins Combs says she's now a Jaguars fan.
Sandy Combs went viral for her post about sitting next to @TravisHunterJr on a flight
She joins the show to recount her experience with the @Jaguars top pick 🫶 pic.twitter.com/fpedAH0bo0
— Good Morning Football (@gmfb) May 13, 2025
The legend of Jaguars star Travis Hunter continues to grow
Travis Hunter rose to prominence and went second overall because of his ability to play two ways at a high level. However, you could make the case that anything he does off the field is equally appealing.
From playing video games while waiting on Draft Day to talking about his love for fishing, the West Palm Beach native is extremely relatable. Back at Colorado, being an honor student was equally important as playing football. Now that he's checked off that box, he can focus on being the player the Jaguars want.
And while there's plenty of time left before Travis Hunter can showcase his talent on the NFL field, don't be surprised if you keep hearing about more interactions like the one he had with Sandy Hawkins Combs.
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