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Following his Heisman trophy victory on Saturday, Travis Hunter responded to the online criticisms of his girlfriend Leanna Lenee. During his emotional acceptance speech, Hunter thanked Lenee and his mother, crediting their unwavering support throughout his career.
“First, I want to thank my fiancée and my mother,” Hunter said. “They’ve been with me since the first time I had surgery my first year of college. They never took a step away from me. All the hard hours. All the hard days. All the times I didn’t want to wake up and even get on my phone, look at football, y’all stayed with me. I’m very thankful for y’all.”
However, social media chatter soon amplified after two separate incidents at recent public events involving Hunter and Lenee. Critics speculated about Lenee's demeanor after a video showed Colorado head coach Deion Sanders nudging her to stand during the Heisman ceremony. Another video from a fan meet-and-greet surfaced online, with claims that Lenee appeared disengaged while conversing with Hunter.
Travis Hunter defends his fiancée while addressing the backlash she received for her comments as he was taking photos with fans and says that she has been crying and drinking all day because of the hate she’s been receiving 😳 pic.twitter.com/vk3kZpmmnQ
— FearBuck (@FearedBuck) December 16, 2024
Hunter responded to the backlash during a Twitch stream, strongly defending his fiancée and their relationship. “You ain’t never had no girl, so why are y’all talking about me?” he said. “Find someone else to talk about. Go talk about your girl. Go find a girl. Go find a life. Stop worrying about what I got going on. I know what I got.”
He dismissed the claims tied to the meet-and-greet video, explaining that their animated exchange stemmed from discussing family logistics for the evening.
“Y’all hate on me then y’all go hate on my girl,” Hunter said. “I feel the same thing that she feels. We’re inseparable. We’re with each other. If she’s hurting, I’m hurting.”
Addressing the toll of public scrutiny, Hunter mentioned Lenee had been deeply upset by the online criticism. “She’s still sleeping. She’s lump. You know when you’re hurt, you just cry yourself to sleep,” he added.
As Hunter indicated, he and Lenee have been together for five years. The couple made their relationship public in 2022, though Lenee has played a pivotal role in his life and career.
During an interview on “The Pivot” podcast, Hunter revealed that Lenee helped him make the decision to attend Jackson State University and play for Deion Sanders. “My girl, she was still there. She still is here. People don’t know—I had that conversation with her first before I went to my family,” Hunter shared.
Despite the online criticism, Hunter has made it clear that he and Lenee’s relationship remains steadfast. “Something bad is gonna happen to y’all [if you] keep doing that. Y’all better stop that—I ain’t playing.”
