Deion Sanders walked into Colorado’s first day of fall camp with a message that left no room for nostalgia. Last season is over. The only thing that matters now is what the Buffaloes build next.
On Monday at UCCS in Colorado Springs, Sanders set the tone before Colorado’s opening practice by pushing his team to treat Day 1 like the blueprint for everything that follows.
"It's Day 1, fellas, set the tone that you want to establish for yourself. Day 1 is going to be just like Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, so you set the tone, you set the standard for you," Sanders said, addressing his team before Colorado's opening practice of fall camp on Monday.
He made the restart sound exactly like that - a restart.
"There's some things in life that you're not proud of, you want a do-over, and you got it, you've got the opportunity, it's a restart, this is the beginning, this is the genesis of everything," he added.
That kind of reset matters for a Colorado team trying to move past a 3-9 finish. Even with the season still in its opening stages, there’s already a different energy around the program. The Buffs are not in Boulder yet, but the buzz around Sanders’ team keeps growing along the Flatirons.
Part of that optimism comes from the roster itself. Colorado lost some notable pieces over the offseason, including leading receiver Omarion Miller, former five-star left tackle Jordan Seaton, and the Buffs' leading tackler Tawfiq Byard. Still, plenty around the program believe this group is deeper, more experienced, and better built for the Big 12 grind.
A big reason for that belief is quarterback Julian "JuJu" Lewis. He enters his second season in Boulder with more experience and a stronger supporting cast, including one of the conference’s deepest receiver groups. Colorado also brought in Brennan Marion as quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator, and his Go-Go offense gives the Buffs a system tailored to players like Danny Scudero, Kam Perry, DeAndre Moore Jr. and Ernest Campbell.
There’s similar optimism on defense, where new coordinator Chris Marve is working with a unit assembled largely through the transfer portal. Several of those newcomers bring Power Four production with them, and Sanders has already pointed to Tennessee transfer Boo Carter as an early name to watch during camp. He went even further in his praise of the versatile defensive back.
“That kid right there is going to be a first-rounder either this year or next year,” Sanders told Phillip Dukes of Dukes the Scoop Podcast.
If Lewis and the rest of Colorado’s offseason additions click, the Buffaloes have the look of a dangerous Big 12 sleeper, even a team with dark-horse conference title potential.
But that kind of talk can wait. The immediate task is simpler and harder at the same time: figure out who this team is before Sept.
- Colorado opens against Georgia Tech, a rematch of last season’s 27-20 Yellow Jackets win at Folsom Field, and the Buffs know they need to come together fast.
Georgia Tech will look different this time, too. Haynes King is gone after rushing for 156 yards and three touchdowns in last year’s win.
The Yellow Jackets are expected to turn to Indiana transfer Alberto Mendoza, who backed up his older brother, Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza, during Indiana's national championship run. Mendoza brings a different style than King, but his mobility still gives Colorado’s rebuilt defense something to sort out.
For now, Sanders’ challenge is the one that matters most. The Buffs need chemistry.
They need toughness. They need the consistency he demanded from the opening day of camp.
If they find it, Colorado believes it has the talent to climb back into the Big 12 conversation and put last season’s frustration behind it.
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