Travis Hunter could make his long-awaited return this Friday against Stanford.

Hunter returned to practice for CU on Monday. And, a week after Colorado head coach Deion Sanders said he’d prefer to see the dynamic two-way star remain out until after Colorado’s Oct. 21 bye week, Sanders had a different message at his news conference on Tuesday.

“There’s a tremendous chance he could play,” Sanders said. “It goes by how he looks, how he performs in practice, how his wind is. He has to be in shape. I don’t want him to be a liability. I always want him to be a tremendous asset.

“Travis, he came to me yesterday morning and said, ‘What more can I do to help us get to the point that we need to get to?’ I love the team aspect of Travis 100%, but I hope he can play.”

Hunter is cleared to play, Sanders said.

“He has protection on to secure those areas, but the game is the game. The game is a violent game, it’s a vicious game, it’s a very physical game,” Sanders said. “But Travis is also physical.”

Hunter has not played for Colorado since the Sept. 16 win over Colorado State, when a hit sent him to the hospital with a lacerated liver.

CU lost its first two games without Hunter — against Oregon and USC — but beat Arizona State last Saturday, 27-24, to get back to .500 on the season. CU also saw defensive backs Shilo Sanders and Myles Slusher return against Arizona State — something Sanders said would push Hunter to want to get back on the field faster.

Hunter had 16 catches for 213 yards as a receiver on offense. On defense, he has 9 tackles, 2 pass breakups, and an interception. In the season-opening win over TCU on the road, Hunter had 11 catches for 119 yards as well as an interception, becoming the first FBS player in more than two decades to have 100 yards receiving and an interception in the same game.

Colorado has a short week of prep this week before hosting Stanford Friday night at 7 p.m. PT on ESPN.