Referees hit Travis Hunter with unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after prayer celebration in Colorado vs Stanford game; CFB world reacts

Colorado's Travis Hunter is having an amazing return to the turf, after missing several weeks with a lacerated liver due to a heavy tackle by Colorado State's defensive end Henry Blackburn all the way back in Week 3.

In the game against Stanford, the two-way starter caught a 24-yard touchdown pass from Shedeur Sanders with 3:36 left in the first quarter.

Hunter prayed, kneeling on both knees, and then went to hug his coach, Deion Sanders. However, after the touchdown celebration, the referees gave a 15-yard penalty to Colorado and left CFB fans confused.

A fan described the situation as simply nasty:

Others decided to make it political, pointing out that the penalty wasn't in keeping with the spirit and values of America:

Others thought that while the referees ruled Travis Hunter's reaction outside the rules of the game, their ruling should be the illegal one:

Some fans were really confused when they realized that Hunter had been flagged for thanking God:

Some fans openly asked what the reason for penalizing Sanders actually was, while also pointing out that it could be due to him dropping to both knees to celebrate:

Some questioned the wisdom of penalizing Travis Hunter while allowing other players to have crazier celebrations:

Some fans pointed out how illogical it was for the NCAA to allow one-knee celebrations but to prohibit two-knee ones:

Travis Hunter's season so far

Travis Hunter opened the season mesmerizing the country playing upwards of 100 snaps in defense and offense against TCU. Some reports had him playing 141 snaps throughout the game. In that game, he had 119 receiving yards in 11 receptions, and one interception.

Defensively he had nine total tackles, with six solo, three assists, and one interception. Offensively he had 213 receiving yards with no touchdowns before the clash with Stanford. He came down with a lacerated liver in the Week 3 game versus Colorado State, when he suffered a scary tackle by Ram's defensive back Henry Blackburn.

Due to the injury, he was unable to play from Week 3 to Week 6. However, he returned and made some noise in the first quarter itself.