Colorado enters the 2026 season with a chance to reset the conversation around Deion Sanders’ program. After a 3-9 finish in 2025, the Buffaloes have rebuilt the roster, changed the staff, and now face a schedule that leaves little room for a slow start.
The biggest changes came on the coaching side. New offensive coordinator Brennan Marion and defensive coordinator Chris Marve arrive with the kind of track records that naturally create buzz, and Colorado also attacked the transfer portal hard. The Buffs leaned into Power Four talent, adding players such as former Texas wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. and linebacker Liona Lefau.
That kind of overhaul fits the current college football landscape, where teams can turn things around fast. Indiana’s rise to the national championship under Curt Cignetti, powered by Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza, is the example that keeps getting cited.
For Colorado, though, a playoff push is still a big ask. The more immediate question is simpler: what counts as success this fall?
On3 analyst J.D. PicKell put a clear marker on it in a recent YouTube video.
"If they can make a bowl game, that's a great year. That's not me trying to pat Colorado on the head and say, 'Oh just go ahead and make a bowl game, good for you.'
It's like, no, after you had the year you had last year, getting back to neutral as a program would be a really positive step in the right direction. Probably helps recruiting, probably helps NIL and all those things, and then we go from there."
PicKell also pointed back to how expectations have shifted around the program. Before the 2024 season, Colorado’s win total sat at 5.5 games. That was the year Travis Hunter won the Heisman Trophy and the Buffaloes finished 9-4.
This time around, FanDuel Sportsbook has set Colorado’s win total at 4.5 games, a number that suggests oddsmakers do not expect a bowl appearance.
A lot of that pressure lands on quarterback Julian Lewis. The former four-star recruit was a top-100 player in the class of 2025 and drew interest from USC coach Lincoln Riley.
His freshman season came with a supporting cast that did not always help him, and he had a short leash a year ago. Now, he is expected to have full control of the offense in 2026, and that gives Colorado a real chance to surprise people.
The schedule, though, is not doing the Buffs any favors. Their non-conference slate includes road trips to Georgia Tech and Northwestern, both Power Four opponents.
The full schedule reads: @ Georgia Tech, Sept. 3; Weber State, Sept.
12; @ Northwestern, Sept. 19; @ Baylor, Sept.
26; Texas Tech, Oct. 3; Utah, Oct.
17; @ Oklahoma State, Oct. 24; Kansas State, Oct.
31; @ Arizona State, Nov. 7; Houston, Nov.
13; @ Cincinnati, Nov. 21; UCF, Nov.
After last season’s 3-9 record, Colorado cannot afford to assume anything. The Big 12 home slate includes Texas Tech and Utah, while road trips to Oklahoma State and Arizona State stand out as some of the toughest conference tests on the calendar.
In Other News...
Colorado Is Suddenly Winning A Recruiting Fight Fans Know Well
Colorados 2027 recruiting board is starting to look a lot more like the version Deion Sanders envisioned when he arrived in Boulder. The Buffaloes have climbed to No. 35 in the 247Sports team rankings, a notable step up from where their 2026 class finished, and the group already includes 19 verbal commits with several of the kinds of prospects that help change the tone of a cycle. For a program still trying to turn national attention into sustained roster building, that matters.
The more interesting part is how Colorado has kept stacking wins even after taking a few losses on the trail. The Buffaloes have landed a cluster of key commitments and are sitting among the Big 12s better recruiting hauls, which is the kind of progress that can keep a class moving even when a couple of top targets go elsewhere. The next question is whether Colorado can keep that momentum long enough to finish the summer with a class that looks less like a hot start and more like a real recruiting statement. [Read more 🡒]
DeKalon Taylor Had A Strong Reaction To Coach Primes Retreat
Deion Sanders brought a select group of emerging leaders to his Texas ranch for a retreat built around more than just football, and senior running back DeKalon Taylor came away sounding like he got something meaningful out of it. The gathering included current and former NFL players such as Nate Newton, Tony Tolbert and Jalen Ramsey, giving the Buffaloes a chance to hear from people who have already navigated the demands that come with being a pro and a leader.
For Taylor, the timing matters as he heads into the 2026 season with a chance to carve out a bigger role in Colorados backfield. He is in the mix for the starting job, but the Buffaloes could also lean on multiple-back looks that keep him involved either way, and after an injury-hit 2025, any edge in preparation feels especially valuable. [Read more 🡒]
Rider Portela Is Giving Buffs Fans Exactly What They Crave
Rider Portela arrived in Boulder as the lone freshman in Colorados 2026 recruiting class, a status that made him stand out even before the group around him started to grow. By spring, the Buffaloes had added several more newcomers, turning what began as a one-man class into a much fuller freshman wave, and Portela has fit into that expansion while settling in under Tad Boyle and the rest of the staff.
For Colorado fans, the appeal goes beyond just another young body in the program. Portela has talked about wanting to spend all four years in Boulder, and his background as a coachs son gives him a different kind of grounding as he adjusts to Boyles system and the demands of college basketball. In a roster that is getting younger and deeper, that combination of patience and buy-in is exactly the sort of thing the Buffaloes can build around. [Read more 🡒]