(Credit: AP)
With 87 newcomers to his team, head coach Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes (‘Buffs’) shocked 17th-rank TCU, beating them 45-42. You remember Texas Christian University- the school that played in last season’s College Football Playoff National Championship game against the Georgia Bulldogs.
Coach Prime, as he is affectionately known, heard all the critics; the Buffs schedule is too hard, he cleaned house within seconds of landing on campus, and his son was named starting quarterback before he had time to enter the transfer portal and on and on.
The news media predicted that the Buffs would finish the season 12 out of 13 teams. And for this game, the Buffs were 20.5-point underdog. Not only did Coach Prime close his ears to all this talk, but he also demanded that his team do the same. Deion Sanders told everyone who would listen, “We will win…we win”. And so, they did.
Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders, son of Coach Prime, led the team to victory, throwing for a school-record of 510 yards. He is the first quarterback in the school’s history to surpass 500 passing yards in a game. Shedeur completed 38 of 47 passes with four touchdowns and no interceptions.
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“A lot of you didn’t believe in us,” Shedeur said. “It’s crazy because you just got to understand our coach, Coach Prime, my dad, everywhere he went, he was a winner. Every game, every opportunity, he took advantage of. A lot of y’all don’t have the same knowledge and experience that he has. He has a gold jacket, and he’s played in Super Bowls. I feel like now, y’all understand what he’s saying.”
Indeed, they do. Travis Hunter, the former No.1 recruit, so talented, he played on both sides of the ball; Hunter finished with 11 catches for 119 yards, an interception, three tackles, and a pass breakup. Hunter came with Coach Prime from the HBCU Jackson State University. Hunter on the team’s win:
(Credit: AP)
“Football is football, no matter who’s playing. You got to go out there and dominate whoever’s in their way,” he said. “I went out there and dominated. A lot of people doubted me because I rated myself as No. 1 on the Heisman watch list. Now, people are praising me. They didn’t know what I could do. They’ve finally seen what I’ve seen, my vision and the coaches’ vision for me.”
Dylan Edwards, the blue-chip freshman running back, scored four times and finished with 177 all-purpose yards. Coach Prime coached Edwards in youth football when he was seven.
“It’s a lot different now that I’m older and grown,” recalled Edwards. “It’s Primetime- you know what I’m saying. When your coach is the GOAT, you just try to learn from him every day.”
Four players for the Buffs had 100-plus receiving yards. Along with Hunter and Edwards, Jimmy Horn Jr. had 11 catches for 117 yards, and Xavier Weaver had six catches for 118 yards. Coach Prime also saw his other son, Shilo, a safety, post ten tackles.
(Credit: AP)
Before Coach Sanders arrival on the Colorado campus, the Buffaloes won only one game last season. Sanders, a two-time Super Bowl Champion, eight-time Pro Bowler, and nine-time All-Pro, was aggressively recruited by Colorado after he coached at Jackson State University for three years. He was named SWAC and the Black College Hall of Fame Coach of the Year. Sanders led the JSU Tigers to two SWAC Championships. However, the team suffered back-to-back Celebration Bowl losses.
Sanders has also experienced his share of health challenges, but it has not impacted his focus as he builds the Colorado program. In 2021, he had two toes amputated on his left foot. Sanders underwent a ninth surgery on his left leg in July.
Coach Prime can’t rest on this victory, and he knows the questions will continue:
“We’re going to continuously be questioned because we do things that have never been done,” he said. “That makes people uncomfortable when you see a competent Black man sitting up and talking his talk and walking the walk. There’s 75% of African-Americans in that locker room. That’s kinda threatening.”
Up next for the Buffaloes are the Nebraska Cornhuskers on September 9, and on September 30, the 6th ranked USC Trojans will make the trip to Boulder in what is sure to be touted as a showdown between Heisman winner Caleb Williams and the Buffs QB Shaedeur Sanders.
