The attacks on Travis Hunter’s fiancée have gone to a weird place — and so has the discourse.
Hunter, who was awarded the 90th Heisman Trophy on Saturday night despite some media members leaving him off their ballots altogether, has since had to come to Leanna Lenee’s defense. Lenee has faced criticism for various reasons, but most notably, Hunter’s head coach, Deion Sanders, made her stand up at the Heisman Trophy ceremony.
Others criticized Lenee’s demeanor in a video that surfaced online, where she appeared stoic on a couch while Hunter posed for photos during a meet-and-greet with fans at his own event.
There’s a bit more to it, though, and Barstool Sports ‘Jack Mac’ offered a comprehensive breakdown below:
It’s been a tough week for Travis Hunter’s fiance.
She is either the worst or needs serious PR training ASAP. pic.twitter.com/iLImR9Qbme
— Jack Mac (@JackMacCFB) December 16, 2024
Some of the criticism Hunter’s fiancée has faced came from Shannon Sharpe and Chad Johnson on Nightcap:
Well damn, Unc is popping off on this Travis Hunter and his fiancée situation 😮💨😮💨😮💨@ShannonSharpe @ochocinco @ShayShayMedia_ pic.twitter.com/hSFXGdV4Jf
— Nightcap (@NightcapShow_) December 16, 2024
And while Hunter didn’t react to anyone specifically, the discourse reached a boiling point over the weekend. The two-way player for the Buffaloes, likely a top pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, went on a tangent during a livestream on his Twitch, according to the New York Post.
“You ain’t never had no girl, so why are y’all talking about me,” Hunter 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.”
Hunter and his fiancée have been together for five-plus years. He specifically took an issue with “clickbait pages” and implored them to stop or “Something bad gonna happen to y’all if you keep doing that; y’all better stop that. I ain’t playing, y’all better stop.”
“Y’all went everything for clicks,” he added. “Like, stop that — that’s crazy. Y’all hate on me, and then y’all go hate on my girl. Bro, I feel the same thing that she feels. We’re inseparable, bro. We with each other. She hurting, of course I’m gonna be hurting. If I’m hurting, she gonna be hurting.”
Hunter revealed that Lenee was indeed hurting as he claimed she was drunk and cried herself to sleep after seeing the criticism.
“I don’t want her to go to sleep sad,” Hunter said. “It’s hard on me because I can’t even help her.”
Travis Hunter reveals fiancée Leanna Lenee has been drinking and crying due to backlash she’s been receiving. Lenee sparked controversy after Deion Sanders had to get her to stand up at his Heisman Trophy ceremonypic.twitter.com/JL0z5fl9F1
— Kollege Kidd (@KollegeKidd) December 16, 2024
This isn’t the first time their relationship has been under scrutiny — and it sure looks like it won’t be the last.
[NY Post]
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.