Getty Image / Matthew Jonas
Few college football teams have had more attention placed on them this offseason than Colorado and new head coach Deion Sanders. The Buffaloes have made constant headlines since his hiring was announced in early December 2022.
And, it’s for good reason. Sanders, who wants his players to call him “Coach Prime”, is a headline machine, just as he has been since he burst onto the scene as a dual-sport athlete in football and baseball at Florida State in the 1980s. And, in case you somehow forgot, he played both sports professionally, though he is mostly remembered for being one of the greatest cornerbacks in NFL history for the Falcons, 49ers, Cowboys, Redskins, and Ravens.
After moving into coaching by coaching high school football in Texas, Deion Sanders took the head coaching job at HBCU Jackson State, where he quickly turned that program around. And, he’s hoping to do the same at a decrepit Colorado program that is a far cry from what it was in the early 1990s.
But, coming off a 1-11 season, Sanders has retooled the roster with an incredible amount of turnover. He’s brought in studs like Travis Hunter, Cormani McClain, as well has his son, quarterback Shedeur Sanders. But, is that going to be enough to get Colorado bowl-eligible and out of the bottom tier of the PAC-12? Many think it’s not.
Pac-12 preseason media poll:
1. USC (25)
2. Washington (4)
3. Utah (6)
4. Oregon (1)
5. Oregon State
6. UCLA
7. Washington State
8. Arizona
9. California
10. Arizona State
11. Colorado
12. Stanford— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) July 20, 2023
Only Stanford, who has a new coach of their own in Troy Taylor, is behind Colorado according to those who cover PAC 12 football. And, while I think the media has more-or-less got it right in their rank of Deion Sanders and Colorado, some don’t.
CU will silence the doubters in just a little bit. People can try and, assume what CU will be but they don’t know but, soon they will. People don’t fully understand how much talent has been added to this team but, soon they will. This CU team is not the same as it was before.
— Nicholas Braxton (@NicholasBraxt10) July 20, 2023
Egg will be on there faces 11th you got to be 👶 kidding me.
— Patrick McQueen (@Patrick06386969) July 20, 2023
Colorado is going to have to overcome trench play that figures to be the worst in the conference if they are to exceed these expectations.