At the beginning of the year, there has been a lot of buzz about Deion Sanders joining the NFL. That’s when Coach Prime had placed one condition, fulfilling which he would have considered a switch. “The only way I would consider it is to coach my sons,” said Deion. The rest is history.
Shedeur Sanders’ draft did not go well, and he was taken off the racks as late as the fifth round. On the other hand, Deion’s other son, Shilo, went undrafted. Right now, Deion is left with an empty nest. Travis Hunter, who has been no less than Coach Prime’s son, is gone too after gifting his program the sweetest farewell gift, the Heisman. Now the question remains, without Shedeur and Hunter, will Deion’s Colorado be able to sail through the rough water or sink to the bottom? Fox insider, Bruce Feldman, has the answer for it.
On August 7, The Rich Eisen Show invited Feldman to talk about Colorado’s post-Shedeur era. And the analyst did not mince his words and came up with a raw, black and white prediction for Deion’s squad. He said, “I think the roster, probably top to bottom, might be a little better than it was a couple of years ago when he first started getting it going, right? The star power is not there because Shedeur was a high-level college quarterback.” Deion’s son often fell prey to ‘nepo baby’ attacks for his lofty NIL valuation and struggles on the gridiron. In the 2023 season, he became the most sacked player in college football history. Deion’s favorite was sacked 52 times.
But for the 2024 season, all the spotlights were on the former Buffs quarterback. He earned the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year and set multiple records, like 1st in Colorado single-season passing yards (4,134), 1st in Colorado single-season completion percentage (74.0%), and so on. Besides Shedeur, Hunter has been another sturdy wheel of Deion’s wagon. As Feldman shared, “And more than anything, Travis Hunter was a generational player who could take over games. And he did, whether it was a big play on offense or causing a fumble to at the goal line to save them in a game like that is you can’t replace that ability.”
Hunter took Deion’s squad to the peak of success, finishing first in the Big 12 and fifth in the NCAA in receptions (92). Not just this, he became second in the Big 12 and fifth in the country in receiving yards (1,152). One of Deion’s former two-way threat’s best plays was the game-sealing forced fumble against Baylor. The Buffs’ wagon is now moving without two big wheels while Deion is still looking for a best-fit replacement. But no matter whom Coach Prime brings, Feldman has already painted a picture of their 2025 run in his mind.
“I don’t think they’re going to fall apart. I just think some of those moments where Travis took over, I don’t know who does that… I just think that they’re kind of somewhere between where they were in year one of Deion when they won four games and last year when they were in nine. I think they’re probably six or seven,” projected Feldman. So what’s the moral of this whole conversation? Deion needs to buckle up to find someone to pass on the QB1 baton.
Deion Sanders is standing at the crossroads amidst a looming quarterback battle
Initially, Buff fans thought that Julian “JuJu” Lewis would be filling Shedeur’s shoes. After all, what has not Deion done to woo the Carrollton High School star and flip him from the USC Trojans? Appointing 101-year-old Peggy Coppom to woo Lewis to naming Boulder’s famous joint’s burger after the 5-star, Deion did it all. But his QB plans took a left.
He landed the Liberty Flames quarterback Kaidon Salter to compete for the starter’s role. Where does the quarterback battle stand right now? Buff Zone’s Brian Howell shared his take on his YouTube channel. He said, “I didn’t see one clip where Juju was with the starting offensive line. So, to me, I think it’s clear it’s Kaidon right now… not that it won’t change. But you’re right—as it should be, because he’s a senior.” It’s not just about age; Deion took in Salter for a reason. He is a baller. The quarterback holds a resume of 7,800 total yards and 77 touchdowns behind his name.
But on the other hand, Julian Lewis is not going to give up so easily to make Deion Sanders proud. In a conversation with Brian Howell, the 17-year-old said that he is accepting the pressure of lofty expectations with open arms. “I think there’s always that hint of two you’ll feel behind you, of course, because I mean, like you said, him and him and Travis and Coach Prime, they brought in, they brought in something Colorado hadn’t seen. I mean, just the expectations have been there my whole life. So it’s nothing new to me. So, I can’t say I’m stressed out or nervous or anything like that,” shared Lewis. Same goes for Deion. He refuses to survive on the glory of the past and create something greater. “They were great players. We have a better team,” promised Coach Prime. Can the Buffs soar without their big guns?
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