The new season of college football is nearly upon us, and while Arizona State is seeking to repeat as Big 12 champions, the rest of the conference will have something to say about that. In anticipation of the new season, we're breaking down each of the 15 other schools and where they stand heading into the year. You can find previously released breakdowns below.
Today, we look at another team who defied expectations last year, the Colorado Buffaloes.
What happened last year
After a 4-8 debut in Boulder that had fans worried, Deion Sanders and Colorado came into 2024 with very low expectations. While nobody disputed the talent of son Shedeur Sanders and two-way star Travis Hunter, the Buffaloes lacked meaningful depth. Furthermore, the midseason demotion of offensive coordinator Sean Lewis for longtime NFL coach Pat Shurmur was viewed by many as a mistake.
Sanders quickly flipped the script, though. They rebounded from an early loss to Nebraska and won seven of their next eight games to put Colorado squarely on track for the Big 12 title game. Shedeur Sanders and Hunter largely led the way, but the Buffaloes had help from other role players who stepped up in crucial moments.
In the end, Colorado finished in a four-way tie for first in the Big 12, and the tiebreaker formula did not favor them. They were on the outside looking in as Arizona State blew out Iowa State in Arlington to reach the College Football Playoff. Still, the 2024 rebound was what Sanders desperately needed after a dismal first year.
What's new this year
There's lots of new for Colorado going into 2025. Shedeur Sanders and Hunter are both in the NFL, as are the three other receivers to top 300 receiving yards last year. Lead rusher Isaiah Augustave transferred to South Carolina, as well.
Sanders has always built his teams through the transfer portal, and this year is no different. He's seen 33 players transfer out - including Freshman All-American center Cash Cleveland - and welcomed in 33 new transfers. It's a lot of new faces, but change has become the one constant under this regime.
Quarterback is, of course, the big question. Sanders hasn't coached without his son under center since his first year at Jackson State, which was shortened by the COVID-19 pandemic anyway. Now, he's got two main options: Liberty transfer Kaidon Salter and true freshman Julian Lewis, a 4-star prospect rated as the nation's 10th best passer in his class.
At Big 12 Football Media Days, Sanders seemed to hint that Salter, a senior, has the inside track to start the season for Colorado. However, he left the door open for Lewis to see the field as well. Notably, he brought both quarterbacks to Frisco for the event. A lot is going to hinge on this decision.
Reasons for optimism
Sanders is 40-18 as a head coach, his only losing season being his first year in Boulder, where he inherited a team that had just gone 1-11. His outsized personality and subsequent energy has rejuvenated a once-storied program and its fanbase, especially after last year.
Continuity on the coaching staff, with both Shurmur and defensive coordinator Robert Livingston, should help too. Salter went 29-11 in three seasons at Liberty under two different head coaches, offering a reasonably high floor at quarterback.
Reasons for skepticism
Call it fear of the unknown, or call it being a hater. Either way, Sanders has been inextricably tied to his son and Hunter for a long time, and it's hard to know what he is as a coach without such a close bond to his star players already built in. There's also the added difficulty of producing a winning team while building primarily through the portal, as Sanders found out in 2023.
The quarterback question looms large, too. Salter threw 32 touchdowns with a 61% completion rate in 2023 but saw those numbers drop to 15 scores on 56.3% completion rate. Lewis was once a 5-star prospect who saw his ranking gradually drop during his senior year. Both players have plenty of promise, but there's also a real chance neither is the answer in 2025.
Finally, the schedule looks brutal for Colorado this year. They start the season against Georgia Tech, who upset two Top 10 teams last year and took the Georgia Bulldogs to eight overtimes. Those three teams that finished in a regular season tie with Colorado last year? They face all three of them. Add in road trips to Houston, TCU, Kansas State, and Utah and things get very dicey for the Buffaloes.
If the quarterback position - whether it's Salter or Lewis - isn't sorted out properly, Colorado could find themselves in a really tough spot down the stretch.
Realistic expectations
A repeat of last year seems unrealistic at this point, but so does a repeat of Sanders' horrible first year in Boulder. The offensive line remains a question mark, as it has been each of the last two years, but Salter has a much quicker release than Shedeur Sanders ever did.
Even if Salter can help navigate the pass protection issues, Colorado will have brand new weapons at every skill position. The defense also lost several playmakers, not just the elite Hunter, and it will be tough to navigate that while also dealing with so much uncertainty on offense.
Whether Buffaloes fans like it or not, this year marks a new era for Colorado football and for Sanders. The most reasonable expectations are for the Buffaloes to be approaching bowl eligibility, though a sudden emergence of one or two star players could easily ratchet things up a notch.