At the end of the 2022 season, highly sought after head coach and NFL legend Deion “Prime Time” Sanders announced he would be leaving Jackson State’s head coaching position to join Colorado.
Alongside his sons, Shedeur and Shilo, as well as two-way phenom Travis Hunter, Sanders led the Buffaloes to just a 4-8 record in his first season.
Now, heading into week 12 of his second season, Sanders and his Buffs are 7-2 (5-1 in Big 12 play), with a legitimate shot at the first 12-team College Football Playoff this December. They enter the week coming off three straight wins, including two victories in hostile road environments.
So, what have been some of the keys to the turnaround for Coach Prime and Colorado?
It starts in the trenches, an area which the Buffaloes struggled mightily in a season ago. Sanders landed 5-star offensive tackle Jordan Seaton this offseason.
Seaton, who chose the Buffs over Alabama, Ohio State, Oregon and more, ranked as the No.1 OT in his class. Although Seaton has undoubtebly played a key role, the transfer portal additions of Kahlil Benson and Justin Mayers have helped solidify the front, one that prevented Shedeur Sanders, Hunter and the offense from reaching their full potential a season ago.
Mayers entered the season with an 86.3 pass block grade for his career according to PFF, and just two sacks allowed during his two years at UTEP. This season, the Buffs revamped line has allowed just 29 sacks through nine games after allowing 56 in 12 games a season ago.
Benson transferred from Indiana immediately following the conclusion of the 2023 season. At 6’6”, 325, Benson’s size, speed, and physicality from his right guard position opens up the offense, particularly in the ground game.
Colorado finished last in the Pac-12 for rushing yards per game in 2023, averaging just under 69 yards rushing per contest. In 2024, behind Arkansas transfer running back Isaiah Augustave and an improved offensive line, the rushing attack has started to find its legs.
After starting the season slow, Augustave found his stride in Colorado’s 34-7 win over Arizona, where he rushed for 53 yards and a score to add to 107 rushing yards on the game for Colorado. The next week against Cincinnati, Augustave gashed the Bearcats for 91 yards and another house call.
Next, Sanders surrounded his son with a talented receiving duo on the outside in his first season at Colorado with Hunter and UCF transfer Jimmy Horn Jr. This offseason, Coach Prime doubled down, bringing in Will Sheppard (Vanderbilt) and LaJohntay Wester (FAU).
Wester and Sheppard rank second and third behind Hunter respectively in receptions, yards and touchdowns. Combined, Wester and Sheppard have 80 catches, 1052 yards and 12 touchdowns.
And yet, with all the improvements on offense, Sanders’s additions on the defensive end may be the biggest key to the resurgence of the Buffs.
A season ago, The Portal Report published an article focused on Sanders’s first offseason as head man at Colorado. Although the Buffs made moves on the offensive end, the defense struggled, allowing just over 450 yards per game which ranked second to last in the Pac-12.
This offseason, Sanders attacked the defensive side of the ball in the portal.
Nikhai Hill-Green leads the Buffaloes in tackling in ‘24. A two-time transfer, Hill-Green started his career at Michigan before playing at Charlotte a season ago. The linebacker has 68 total tackles and two sacks this season.
DJ McKinney, an Oklahoma State transfer, leads the team with seven passes defended. So far, Colorado has allowed just 367 yards per contest in 2024.
With three winnable games remaining on the schedule, Coach Prime and the Buffs find themselves in position for a Big-12 Championship berth and a College Football Playoff appearance.
In just his second season at the helm, Sanders’s resilient belief in himself, those around him and his work recruiting the transfer portal has Colorado on the brink of one of its most successful seasons in team history.
