As Coach Prime starts building an exciting foundation for his version of the Colorado Buffaloes football program, one lingering question has been, ‘What will he do at quarterback once his son, Shedeur Sanders, leaves for the NFL, potentially as soon as 2024?’
Well, the answer just got a little clearer, as CU has landed three-star quarterback Danny O’Neil from the 2024 recruiting class.
“First off, I would like to thank my parents for their endless love and support,” O’Neil wrote on Twitter in the post announcing his commitment. “You guys have given me every opportunity I could have asked for without ever questioning a thing. I want to thank my Cathedral coaches and the Morelli family for supporting me and pushing me to become the player that I am today. Thank you to all of the coaches who gave me the opportunity to continue my career for their school. And lastly, I want to thank God for blessing me and allowing me to play the game I love. With that being said l will be continuing my athletic and academic career and the University of Colorado.”
https://twitter.com/danny_oneil18/status/1638208951782088705?s=46&t=_zPTCvCAwL9Xjt90n9P-Sw
O’Neil holds a 0.876 composite score, per 247 Sports, making him the No. 6 ranked player in the state of Indiana, the No. 33 ranked quarterback in the nation, and the No. 561 ranked player overall in the 2024 recruiting class.
According to MaxPreps, O’Neil completed 62.9% of his passes last season at 12.8 yards per attempt, making him an efficiently explosive signal caller. He tallied 2,654 total passing yards and a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 32:7.
One concern for top programs with O’Neil is his smaller stature. He’s listed at just 6 feet tall and 185 pounds, but considering he’s only a junior in high school, there’s still room for him to fill out some.
Although the Colorado Buffaloes do have some other potential quarterback options on the roster, landing him is huge, as it further gives the program a sense of stability, and it also represents another recruiting victory for Coach Prime.
247 Sports predicted that O’Neil would land with the Kentucky Wildcats, which should be a desirable landing spot for a quarterback considering what offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Liam Coen pulled off in regard to Will Levis’ development. Yet, he chose the Colorado Buffaloes over not only Kentucky, but Illinois, Louisville, Purdue, Indiana, Northwestern, Syracuse, Wake Forest, and West Virginia, as well.
That’s a lot of Power-5 programs more respected than CU.
Finally, this signing seems to point to 2024 commit Ju’Juan Johnson playing cornerback instead of quarterback, which will delight some and disappoint others. Johnson’s dynamic athleticism made him a tantalizing quarterback prospect, but many Power-5 schools preferred his defensive back tape and thus recruited him as a cornerback, but what Colorado desires him to play hasn’t been cemented yet.