Strike 1: During his time as a future Hall of Fame NFL cornerback, Deion Sanders was as good a “cover corner” as anyone who has ever suited up in the league. He was also a dynamic kick returner, adding to his resume for Canton, Ohio. But as a pure tackler? Let’s just say tackling wasn’t Deion’s best thing.
You can probably say something similar about his prized pupil, Heisman winner Travis Hunter. The “ball skills” are extraordinary. Few humans have ever had better hands or feet. But for the slightly built Hunter, tackling isn’t at the top of his list of skills, either.
Deion doesn’t want things to be like that moving forward.
Now, CU’s third-year head coach wants to change the way his Buffaloes play football. Less flash and more smash. He plans on this season’s version of the CU Buffs to be “physical as hell.”
It makes sense. With Hunter and the rest of last season’s stable of fleet pass catchers having moved on to the NFL, and with standout passer Shedeur Sanders gone pro as well, the Buffs will have to take on a new look. And according to Deion, that new look may be more black and blue than last year’s shiny black and gold.
“We’re gonna run the heck out of the ball,” Deion told the gathering during last week’s Media Day in Boulder. “We have to.”
When asked about what stood out to him the most about the first two weeks of fall camp, Sanders went straight to his offensive line. The two new quarterbacks weren’t even brought up until well into the Q&A session. With a preseason honors candidate, Jordan Seaton, anchoring things at left tackle, plus preseason watch list running backs Dallas Hayden and Micah Welch, CU appears ready to shift gears offensively from the last two seasons of pass-happy offense when Shedeur was running the point.
The “we have to” part from the head coach stems largely from the change under center. Newcomers Kaidon Salter and Julian “JuJu” Lewis are both dual threat guys more than pocket passers. Salter – a fifth-year senior transfer from Liberty – is a good bet to be the guy to take the opening snaps against visiting Georgia Tech on Friday, Aug. 29. He’s a much better runner than thrower, and it’s an even safer bet that CU offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur will want to avoid putting either QB in difficult passing situations, especially early in the season.
For all of Shedeur’s skills and accolades, his ability to avoid turnovers may be the most underrated. For this CU team to have a chance to return to a bowl game, his replacements are going to have to have the same kind of success protecting the football.
Nevertheless, the shift to an emphasis on the running game isn’t as easy as it might appear. CU’s rushing attack has been anemic under Deion. Changing that isn’t as simple as just changing quarterbacks. Can these Buffs produce a 1,000 yard rusher? The last Buff to do so was Phillip Lindsay, way back in 2017.
Not that this can’t be done. Just last season, rival Colorado State went away from the “air raid” offense and featured an attack that was far more about the running game and controlling the ball. While the Rams were hardly dynamic on offense, their turnovers were down and like the Buffs, they broke a long streak of missing bowl games.
And for those who remember Shurmur’s stints coaching in the NFL (including with the Denver Broncos) you know this is the kind of offense he’s best at coaching.
CU fans may miss the days of the “Shedeur-to-Travis” big play connections, but if it keeps their team on the plus side of the win-loss column, the complaints will fade. If not, the onus will be on Deion and his offensive coaches to shift gears once again.
