Why Jaguars’ Staff Is Built for Travis Hunter’s Unique Schedule

Travis Hunter has been a popular individual since the Jaguars traded up to draft him second overall last month. He’s been especially popular within the walls of team headquarters.

“Yeah, you’re definitely going for maximum efficiency,” Jacksonville offensive coordinator Grant Udinski said Monday after the team’s first organized team activity session on the practice fields. “You’re trying to optimize the time, so it’s different. It’s a unique challenge, but it’s a fun challenge; it’s an exciting challenge.

“He’s the type of guy that, because of that passion and the love of the game, who’s up for the challenge, can do it. It’s definitely different compared to the rest of the guys and his schedule. It’s a unique skillset, unique person and a unique player.”

Unique because he’s expected to become the first NFL player to see regular snaps on both sides of the ball since his college coach, Deion Sanders, did it in 1996. And as a two-way player, Hunter has two position coaches. He also can’t be in two places at once, at least we don’t believe.

Fortunately for the Jaguars, each of those position coaches, Edgar Bennett and Ron Milus, has front-row experience with two-way players in the NFL. Jaguars head coach Liam Coen trusts them with working out Hunter’s daily meeting schedule.

“Edgar Bennett, the coaches, Ron Milus, those guys have done a great job of meeting with him when they’ve had time to do so, and Travis has worked hard at getting this stuff right,” Coen said Monday.

Bennett, Hunter’s wide receivers coach and a Jacksonville native, was Sanders’ Florida State teammate from 1987-88. In those two seasons, the Seminoles finished No. 2 and No. 3 in the respective final polls. Later in the NFL, Bennett and Sanders met several times, including a pair of memorable NFC playoff games in Dallas, where Sanders and the Cowboys beat Bennett’s Packers in both 1994 and 1995.

Milus, the Jacksonville secondary coach, spent time as Champ Bailey’s primary coach in Denver from 2011-12. Bailey earned consecutive Pro Bowl selections as a cornerback in those two seasons, helping Denver advance to the divisional round of the playoffs each year. Although the future Hall of Famer didn’t see snaps on offense during his time with Milus, Bailey earlier in his career possessed the skills to play occasionally as a wide receiver in 2000 and 2004 with Washington.

Bailey navigated a similar transition from Georgia to the NFL in 1999. But there was one key difference, he said.

“People could see him coming more,” Bailey told Jeff Legwold in December. “A lot of guys play both ways in high school, return kicks and punts, play in the band at halftime. And they get to college and the coaches who recruited them -- who said they loved the versatility -- now tell them the second day of camp, 'You're here, you're here,' and that's it. But people could see Travis coming.

“He did it at Jackson State before transferring in 2023, and Prime said he was going to let him do it at Colorado. So, there wasn't even a question from his coach.”

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