Deion Sanders’ first-year vision for Colorado taking shape as season looms

More than 40 Colorado players entered the portal after spring camp — many reportedly pushed out as the new coaching staff reassembles on the fly a team that went 1-11 last season. Since December, when Sanders was hired, the number of Colorado players in the portal is more than 50. The Buffaloes will begin the 2023 season — and host Nebraska in Week 2 — with an almost entirely different roster from a year earlier.

The latest additions aren’t flashy as those that came immediately, the “luggage” Sanders famously said he was bringing with him from Jackson State. Cornerback/wide receiver and former No. 1 recruit Travis Hunter quickly followed Sanders, as did the coach’s son, Shadeur Sanders, who threw for 3752 yards as JSU’s quarterback in 2022.

A handful of established players joined them in December and January, like former Arkansas safety Myles Slusher. As Colorado has continued building through the portal with a shallower pool, the types of players arriving in Boulder have changed.

The newcomers since April generally weren’t stars at their old schools like Hunter and Sanders. Many were highly recruited out of high school to Power Five schools and never quite fulfilled their promise, with Sanders and Colorado banking on them taking advantage of the opportunity Colorado provides as it builds up from scratch.

The most common recent source of Sanders’ portal additions has been his alma mater, Florida State. Safety Travis Jay and defensive tackle Bishop Thomas are both former Seminoles who never got consistent playing time in Tallahassee. Jay made one start in four years; Thomas appeared in two games as a freshman in 2022. Both were four-star recruits out of high school.

Arden Walker and Jibran Hawkins committed to Colorado from similar backgrounds. Once three-star defensive ends, Walker was never more than a rotational piece in Missouri’s defense. Hawkins recorded a lone tackle in four games at Ole Miss.

Tar’Varish Dawson came to Auburn as a four-star wideout with the build and quickness to excel out of the slot. He played in five games over two seasons, catching two passes for 30 yards.

What all five have in common is, at one time, they were all expected to be productive college football players, and they haven’t spent enough time on the field to definitively prove otherwise. Of course, the other side of that coin is the risk Sanders is taking by building for the immediate future almost exclusively through the transfer portal: many of the new additions haven’t played much college football. Their value is unknown.

That’s not to say there are no established veterans coming to Colorado amid the post-spring avalanche of departing transfers. Omarion Cooper played in 12 games with the Florida State last season and recorded 14 tackles and an interception. Yet another former Seminole, Derrick McLendon, had 37 tackles and 3.5 sacks as an edge rusher.

Javon Antonio was a productive receiver at Northwestern State. He’ll help smooth over the loss of Montana Lemonious-Craig, a breakout star of the Buffs’ spring game. In June, Sy’Veon Wilkerson became the latest former Jackson State Tiger to join Sanders at Colorado. The running back rushed for 848 yards and eight touchdowns in 2022.

Sanders has found success with uncommon methods before. His recruiting success at Jackson State was unprecedented at the FCS level. His massive overhaul of a moribund Colorado program is an even bigger gambit as he hunts the portal more aggressively than any coach in the country. It leaves Colorado in uncharted territory, the results of its grand experiment growing nearer.