“As we sit here, Travis Hunter is a Jacksonville Jaguar,” Gladstone told reporters. “And what really comes to mind for me, right, thinking about the sport of football and the power of the game itself, it is the capacity to ignite belief. Belief in ourselves, belief in others, belief in achieving what many deem is impossible.

To some, Gladstone's rise feels meteoric. To those who best know him, including mentor Les Snead, his new position feels like a given