Deion Sanders finally put Cormani McClain back in the starting lineup for Colorado against Arizona on Saturday. Finally.
The five-star freshman has had a very strange start to his college football career.
McClain, the top-ranked defensive back in the recruiting Class of 2023, flipped to play for Coach Prime and the Buffaloes after all signs pointed toward a commitment to the Miami Hurricanes. He arrived to Boulder over the summer with a lot of hype, on a defense that allowed him an opportunity to play right away.
That is not what happened. Cormani McClain barely saw the field during the first few weeks of the season.
When asked about the reason why, Deion Sanders sent a very blunt message to his top recruit during something of a public lashing. It was a pretty aggressive stance for a head coach to take against one of his own players, but that is part of the new culture at Colorado.
McClain responded to Coach Prime both on Instagram during the week and on the field against USC. His breakout performance against the Trojans was very encouraging. He got his flowers for playing possessed in the locker room after the close loss.
As a result, McClain earned his first start. That didn’t last long.
Poor play during the first quarter against Arizona State led Sanders to bench McClain. The young cornerback was a significant liability against the Sun Devils on October 8.
McClain did not record but a handful of snaps throughout the rest of October. Coach Prime refused to play him.
Cormani McClain is back!
After riding the bench against Stanford, UCLA and Oregon State, McClain received high praise from the Buffaloes coaching staff during this past week. They were extremely proud of his growth.
Assistant coach Paul Bradley offered a story that spoke to McClain’s character. Sanders said that he was “going to play this week and dominate.”
Sure enough, come the first play of the defensive drive of Saturday’s game against Arizona, Cormani McClain was on the field. He finally got back in the starting lineup!