When head coach Deion Sanders took over the Colorado football program ahead of the 2023 season, it quickly became one of the most talked about and debated programs in the country. That season ended with a frustrating 4-8 record, but there are plenty who expect the program to take a step forward in 2024.
With spring practice in full swing, college football analyst Greg McElroy set what he feels are fair expectations for the Colorado football team on Always College Football.
“I’m gonna hold out hope until I know for sure that they are improved on both lines of scrimmage,” McElroy said. “Now, Colorado’s offensive line play was as bad as it gets.”
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“They could not open up consistent rush lanes. They couldn’t keep Shedeur Sanders upright. The run game averaged less than two yards per carry. Part of that is because of sacks and, just so you know, their quarterbacks were sacked 56 times.”
Following the 2023 season, Deion Sanders made it clear that there was going to be an effort to flip the offensive line, which Sanders did through the transfer portal. In the 2024 cycle, six Colorado offensive linemen transferred out of the program. Meanwhile, six offensive linemen were added through the Transfer Portal alone.
“Now, they did infuse quite a bit of talent on both lines of scrimmage. During the offseason, Colorado added six offensive linemen, including some highly regarded prospects, like Tyler Johnson and a Class of 2024 five-star prospect in Jordan Seaton. Add in Tyler Brown, and the Buffaloes have the makings of a talented group, but will they be cohesive enough to be able to take the next step?”
Of those eight losses that Colorado suffered last season, four of them were one-score losses. That could quickly flip. However, as McElroy pointed out, just because you lose close games doesn’t mean that won’t happen again.
“You also think too, and I thought this quote was telling, from Deion Sanders, ‘Last year we were seven points away from seven or eight more wins. We just didn’t know how to win. We got our butts kicked twice. Several of those games we could have won, we could have definitely been a bowl team. We made noise, but now we’re going to make some sounds.’ That’s great. Yes, you were very, very close in several games. The Stanford game comes to mind. A few others down the stretch where I thought they played a little bit better on the defensive side, but we’ve heard that before. How many times have we said in the last few years, ‘Well, Nebraska lost a lot of close games. That things gonna flip.’ But close losses don’t always flip into wins the following year.”
So, what does all of that mean for Colorado in 2024? According to McElroy, it means that while Colorado is in a position to improve, it probably doesn’t make them a contender just yet.
“So, while I think the Buffs will be better, the hype is probably going to have them in the preseason Top 25. It will probably have them as a fringe, darkhorse, College Football Playoff contender, I don’t think that’s likely. I think they’ll make some noise. I think they’ll be an exciting team to watch, but I think six, seven wins would a great step in the right direction for Deion here in year number two.”
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