Cornerback Travis Hunter, 2022′s No. 2 overall college football recruit, flipped his commitment from Florida State to HBCU Jackson State University on national signing day Wednesday.

Hunter had been committed to Florida State since March 2020. He is the “first five-star high school football prospect to sign with an FCS team since ESPN started its rankings in 2006,” per ESPN.

The college football world is calling it the “biggest flip in history.”

Former NFL star turned Jackson State coach Deion Sanders played football for Florida State. Early on in the signing process, he teased that Jackson State was “going to shock the country.”

Amanda Cristovich of Front Office Sports slammed reports that Hunter flipped amid a NIL deal with Barstool worth millions. 

“The rumor that Jackson State commit Travis Hunter has an NIL (name, image and likeness) deal with Barstool is FALSE, a source close to the program tells @FOS,” Cristovich tweeted.

“Florida State has always been a beacon for me,” Hunter said in his Twitter post Wednesday. “I grew up down there. That’s where my roots are I never doubted that I’d play for the Seminoles. It’s a dream that is hard to let go of, but sometimes we are called to step into a bigger future than the one we imagined for ourselves. For me, that future is at Jackson State University.”

Hunter, a five-star cornerback from Collins Hill High School in Suwanee, Georgia, said the opportunity to play for an HBCU played a factor in his decision.

“Historically black colleges and universities have a rich history in football,” he wrote. “I want to be part of that history, and more, I want to be part of that future. I am making this decision so that I can light the way for others to follow, make it a little easier for the next player to recognize that HBCUs may be everything you want and more. An exciting college experience, a vital community and a life-changing place to play football.”

Hunter’s Jackson State announcement on Twitter received a flurry of angry comments from users accusing the athlete of selling out for money. 

One user commented “You need to stop the BS. You picked Jackson st because of the money. Not because it’s a HBCU and not because of the history or other players who played at them. Would you be there without the NIL money? Absolutely not, so let’s not pretend it’s about anything else.”

Another defended the move, writing, “Or maybe he’s going because he’s the best corner in his class who gets to learn from the best corner to ever play the game.”

A third said, “Why didn’t you include the money in your reasoning for picking them? We aren’t stupid lol”.

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