The Colorado Buffaloes and head coach Deion Sanders have been one of the most popular teams in college football over the last couple of years. However, a lot has changed from last season to this year.
Gone are both Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter. Shilo Sanders is also gone, as well as a few other key pieces from the 2024 roster.
In order to remain competitive, Sanders will have to prove that he’s actually an elite college football head coach. He still has talent on the roster, but he will need to be much more instrumental in getting the most out of his team.
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Sanders is arguably one of the three most popular coaches in the nation. His personality has served him well in his role with Colorado.
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That being said, things could unravel quickly for the Buffaloes.
Ahead of the upcoming 2025 college football season, Colorado has received a new unflattering projection. When it comes to their bowl game outlook, the Buffaloes landed in an unimpressive position.
The Athletic recently took a look at their projected College Football Playoff field and also projected out where other teams will land in their bowl matchups. For Colorado, the projection was a matchup against Colorado State in the New Mexico Bowl.
Making a bowl game would be a plus for the Buffaloes. However, the New Mexico Bowl is not one of the more prestigious bowls for teams who miss the playoff.
Heading into the 2025 season, Colorado will need a couple of leaders to step up. To this point, Sanders has not announced who his starting quarterback will be. That battle has come down to Kaidon Salter, Julian Lewis, and Ryan Staub.
It’s expected that Salter, who transferred from Liberty, will end up being the starter to begin the year. He would be asked to fill the shoes left by the Shedeur, who went on to the NFL with the Cleveland Browns.
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All eyes will be on Sanders and the Buffaloes this season. If the team falls off aggressively, the dynamic head coach will shoulder a large portion of the blame.
Hopefully, Sanders is able to get the most out of his team and make a bowl game. That should be the goal at the very minimum, but a bigger bowl game than the New Mexico Bowl would be much preferred.
For more on the Colorado Buffaloes and for more college football news, head to Newsweek Sports.
