The AP Top 25 is still taking shape, but Colorado has already forced its way into the conversation.
After opening the year with wins over Georgia Tech and Weber State, the Buffaloes are sitting at 2-0 and have already started to pick up national attention. Before Colorado rolled past Weber State 52-21, the Buffs had received three votes in the AP Top 25 Poll, which put them effectively at No. 40 in the country.
That slot placed Colorado in a crowded neighborhood. James Madison sat at No.
38, Minnesota at No. 39, and then came a three-way tie at No. 41 with Vanderbilt, Arizona State and Auburn. In all, 43 teams received votes after Week 1, even though only the top 25 make the official cut.
The first AP Poll of the season looked like this: Texas at No. 1, followed by Georgia, Notre Dame, Indiana and Ohio State. Miami came in at No. 6, then LSU, Ole Miss, Texas A&M and Alabama rounded out the top 10.
Texas Tech checked in at No. 11, with USC, BYU, Michigan and Oklahoma next. SMU, Penn State, Tennessee, Utah, Washington, Iowa, Oregon, Missouri, Louisville and Oklahoma State filled out the rest of the rankings.
Colorado still has some climbing to do, but the path is clear. The Buffaloes probably need a few more wins before they can break into the official top 25, though another bump in votes seems likely. If Colorado reaches seven votes, that would put the team inside the top 35.
There were plenty of reasons for optimism in the Weber State win. Julian Lewis was sharp, throwing for 366 yards and four touchdowns while completing 17 of 23 passes. Micah Welch also gave the Buffaloes a major lift on the ground, becoming the first Colorado ball carrier to top 100 rushing yards in a game since Sanders arrived in Boulder, Colorado.
Still, the performance wasn’t clean. Colorado was flagged 13 times for 107 penalty yards, and that kind of sloppiness could become a real issue once Big 12 Conference play arrives.
Sanders made it clear afterward that he expected more.
“We didn't capitalize on offense. We only scored 52 points.
We should have been a lot more productive and had a lot more expectations of that productivity. We didn't get done what we wanted to get done.
There's no way that we're satisfied with the outcome. We're not.
That's just where we are right now,” Sanders said.
If Colorado keeps sharpening things under offensive coordinator Brennan Marion and defensive coordinator Chris Marve, a spot in the AP Top 25 may not be far off. When the Week 2 poll drops, it wouldn’t be a shock to see the Buffaloes included.
In Other News...
Shedeur And Travis Hunter Just Gave Colorado Fans Flashbacks
Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter found each other again after the Browns game at Jacksonville, a quick reunion that was enough to send Colorado fans right back to the years when the two were helping reshape the program under Deion Sanders. Both arrived in Boulder from Jackson State and became the faces of the Buffaloes rise, with Shedeur emerging as the Big 12s top offensive player in 2024 and Hunter going on to win the Heisman Trophy.
For Colorado supporters, seeing them together again carried an extra layer of nostalgia because the school already made their bond part of program history at the 2025 spring game, when their jersey numbers were retired side by side. The reunion did not change anything on the field, of course, but it was the kind of brief moment that reminded fans how much those two meant to the programs recent turnaround and why every appearance still feels bigger than a simple postgame hello. [Read more 🡒]
Colorado Finally Found Something Deions Offense Had Been Missing
Colorados offense finally checked a box it had been chasing for much of the Deion Sanders era, and it did so in convincing fashion during a 52-21 win over Weber State. Joseph Williams and DeAndre Moore Jr. each topped 100 receiving yards, while Micah Welch gave the Buffaloes the kind of ground balance that has often been missing, helping a unit that has already piled up records for yards and points under Sanders look more complete for one afternoon.
The bigger picture is what makes the performance stand out. Colorado had never done this many times before, with two 100-yard receivers and a 100-yard rusher in the same game happening only three times in program history, and Welchs breakout added another layer to a roster still trying to define its identity. True freshman Kaneal Sweetwyne also got into the action by completing passes and scoring a touchdown, a reminder that the Buffs are still discovering what pieces they can lean on as the schedule gets tougher. [Read more 🡒]
Deion Sanders Sees One Problem That Could Hurt Colorado Fast
Colorados home opener at Folsom Field still ended in a comfortable 52-21 win over Weber State, and there were early signs of the offense clicking as Julian Lewis helped the Buffaloes jump ahead with 129 yards and two touchdowns. Even so, the postgame mood wasnt purely celebratory. Deion Sanders made clear he wanted more out of the group, especially from a side of the roster that can quietly swing games before they ever feel settled.
The concern is starting to look less like a one-off and more like a pattern Colorado has to clean up fast. The Buffaloes have already been flagged far too often through two games, and special teams added its own mess against Weber State with a punt-return giveaway, a kickoff formation penalty and a timeout when only 10 players took the field for a field-goal attempt. For a team trying to build momentum, those are the kinds of mistakes that can turn an easy afternoon into a much tighter one in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]