At one point in their lives, the Etienne brothers were inseparable. They never went to the same school. A nearly six-year age gap prevented that. But Travis and Trevor did nearly everything else together. They played football at the local park. They hung out in the same friend circles. They slept in bunk beds at their parents’ home in their 10,000-person hometown of Jennings, Louisiana — one above the other, dreaming the same dreams. “My mom wouldn’t let me go anywhere without my little brother,” Travis Etienne, running back for the Jacksonville Jaguars, told The Charlotte Observer in a phone conversation last week. He chuckled as he said it, remembering the directive from his mother, Donnetta. But for all they did together growing up — and for as much as Trevor’s path seems to mirror Travis’, after the younger brother and running back was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the fourth round of last week’s draft — there was some advice the older brother wanted the younger brother to heed. Carve your own path. You deserve that. Georgia Bulldogs running back Trevor Etienne (1) reacts after rushing for a touchdown against the Texas Longhorns during the second half in the 2024 SEC Championship game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Dale Zanine-Imagn Images That led Trevor away from Clemson, where Travis had such a great career. And, in many ways, it landed him with the Panthers, where he is now. “I feel like everyone always tried to see him as just my little brother,” Travis said. “He’s actually his own person. I feel like he has his own running style. I feel like he has his own mannerisms. And often in the football world, just with the accolades I’ve reached, people have kind of just said, ‘Oh, his little brother.’ “So I just kind of wanted him to go out there and forge his own path. Let the world learn who he is as a person, as a player.” And the world has. Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. (1) leaving the field after an NFL International Series game. Peter van den Berg/Imagn Images Trevor says ‘words can’t explain’ Travis’ impact on him Trevor Etienne ended up being a fourth-round selection by the Panthers. The 114th pick, officially. The 5-foot-9, 205-pound, 20-year-old scamperer was the ninth running back taken in the 2025 draft. He joins a Panthers draft class as one one of four offensive players the Panthers took in the draft, one of three who played at Florida and one of two who are younger than 20. The parallels between the Etienne brothers are pretty notable. They play the same position. They both had glowing high school careers — Trevor breaking some of the records Travis once set at Jennings High School — and each followed that up with great college careers. Trevor, specifically, spent his first two college years at Florida before transferring in 2024 to Georgia, where he ran for 609 yards (5 yards per carry) and nine touchdowns in 10 games played. And while Trevor did make his own way in college and beyond, he still embraces his brother and everything he’s done, all he’s taught him. When asked about his brother’s impact on him, Trevor smiled: “Words can’t explain it.” “He always told me don’t try to leave a legacy, live a legacy,” Trevor continued. “And that’s something he’s told me in high school, and I carry it through life. What I’ve learned from him is how much you have to become a pro — how much you have to lock in and become a student of the game and just take care of your body. I learned so much.” Georgia running back Trevor Etienne runs a drill during the schools NFL Pro Day at the University of Georgia Indoor Practice Facility, Wednesday, March, 12, 2025, in Athens, Ga. (Jason Getz / AJC) Jason Getz TNS Trevor ‘welcomes contact’ in run game The Etienne brothers are one of the few brotherly duos in the NFL presently, and are one of the few in league history to be on NFL rosters at the same time and both play running back. They’re a duo, in many ways, that’s one of one — similar to each other and different to the rest of the world. However, float that theory by Travis, and he’ll politely remind you how distinct the two of them are. “He’s more of a shiftier guy,” Travis said of Trevor. “He doesn’t mind finishing through somebody’s face. He likes contact. He welcomes the contact. I’m a fast guy, so when I would just run around them, he would just try to go through him. He loves to juke. He got some wiggle to him. That’s probably the main difference right there.” That doesn’t include his return game, which Travis once-considered “unfair” to the high school kids he’d watch try to bring Trevor down. That also doesn’t include his prowess as a high school safety, where he recorded an interception as a senior at Jennings High (and took that interception 41 yards). Georgia running back Trevor Etienne picking up yardage before fumbling at the Notre Dame 10 yard line at the Sugar Bowl at the Caesars Superdome Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, in New Orleans. (Jason Getz / AJC) Jason Getz TNS And remember, too: The two have been distinct for a while by virtue of their age gap. They’ve never played on the same team. Outside of sweltering summer days spent at parks across Louisiana, they rarely shared the same field. That might change this year. The Panthers and the Jaguars are scheduled to play each other this season. It’ll be a Jags home game. The league schedule is set to come out this month. “It’s something you dream of, but until it comes to fruition, you can’t really understand it,” Travis said. “For my parents, it’s going to be very exciting. I think it’s going to be a moment filled with love and joy, for real. … “Us being together, from so young to now, and knowing that we’ve dreamed of these things and it’s actually happening — I feel like that’s a moment we’re just going to take in and enjoy because this doesn’t happen often.” Travis, however, added that once the game begins — once the time for reflection is over and time for destruction arrives — he won’t hesitate. “And then I’ll try to go out there and kick his ass, win the game,” Travis joked. That’s the ultimate brotherly love. That and telling Trevor to live his own legacy all those years ago. To forge his own path. The path that led him here, where the brothers have never been before. Associations, as well as the Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE) group. He’s earned five APSE Top 10 distinctions, most recently in the Long Features category in 2024.k
