Say what you will about the Travis Hunter and Shedeur Sanders near-immediate jersey retirements at Colorado, but they were telling.
The Buffaloes knew they had just lost two crucial players.
Obviously, it's not a surprise that Colorado will miss them. Hunter won the Heisman Trophy while playing an unprecedented two-way role. Sanders was a star quarterback who completed 74% of his passes in his final season at CU.
With them gone, things will look different after a bounceback season in which Colorado went 9-4, including 7-2 in the Big 12.
The big number is 30: Deion Sanders brought in 30-plus transfers to restock his roster.
Yahoo Sports' Andy Backstrom thinks Colorado is on its way to being one of the most disappointing teams in the country, in part for that wholesale change reason.
Here's what Backstrom wrote:
Deion Sanders has already proved the doubters wrong at Colorado. He contended for a conference title and led the Buffaloes to their best record since 2016. He also beat bladder cancer this offseason, adding another victory to his always-impressive Pro and College Football Hall of Fame-decorated résumé. But losing a two-way star who doubled as the 2024 Heisman Trophy winner, and his son, who doubled as his starting quarterback the last four years, to the NFL was always going to be hard. Aside from Coach Prime himself, Travis Hunter and Shedeur Sanders were the constant in Boulder the last two seasons. Since their departure, the elder Sanders has brought in the next wave of transfers, another group more than 30 deep. Colorado will look different on paper and, in all likelihood, schematically.
Former Liberty quarterback Kaidon Salter is a dual threat, unlike Shedeur. Maybe that will spark a Buffs running game that’s been mostly invisible through Sanders’ first two seasons at the helm. That is, if Colorado can finally crack the code up front with another offensive line that’s mostly new. What the Buffs did figure out last year was their defense, thanks to now-second-year coordinator Robert Livingston. He’s playing with a new deck, though, and it’s … transfer-heavy. Former USF safety Tawfiq Byard will be flying around, and Conference USA imports Reginald Hughes and Martavius French should bolster the second level. Really, it’s hard to know what to expect from Colorado. The schedule isn’t too forgiving, either, with four straight games against BYU, TCU, Iowa State and bounce-back candidate Utah.
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The quarterback competition will definitely go a long way toward determining whether the Buffs can avoid disappointment.
Salter probably wins out, as the veteran who came in specifically for that job.
But Colorado also has a star freshman, JuJu Lewis. If he looked ready, Sanders might have to play him to make sure he doesn't get unhappy and transfer without even getting a chance with the Buffaloes.
A QB competition combined with dozens of new faces doesn't necessarily bode well for instant chemistry or cohesion.
This will be a telling season for coach Sanders. He brought Shedeur and Hunter with him from Jackson State, and they were a huge part of lifting up Colorado. Without them, how good are the Buffaloes? It'll be a very informative campaign.
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