Deion Sanders Urged to Learn From Big 12 Rivals as Major Factor Predicted to Expose CU Buffs

There’s smoke building in Boulder, and not the kind Deion Sanders likes to flex in promo videos. A storm is coming, and it’s not wearing a CU jersey. The Buffs are stepping into a new Big 12 gauntlet without their two biggest guns—Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter—and the streets are whispering: What’s left? Coach Prime built a house of highlights around two superstars. But now, with both gone, folks are side-eyeing. If Colorado wants to survive this gauntlet, Sanders may have to take notes from the very teams he’s about to face—programs that win not with flash but with foundation. Because in a league where every yard matters, the glitz only gets you so far.

Well, everyone has the same burning question heading into 2025: Can Colorado remain a Big 12 contender after the Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter era ends? That’s not just casual speculation—it’s the same concern voiced by Cover 3 Podcast’s Tom Fornelli. “Now this will be the first time where he won’t have his sons, but more importantly, you also don’t have Travis Hunter, and we saw that in this roster, like the way that Colorado went about building their roster through the portal in the last few years, was designed to put players around Shedeur at quarterback and Travis as a wide receiver quarterback superstar. You were trying to supplement them, but now that those two were gone will the way that they have worked in the portal have the same kind of impact.” That’s the question at the core of everything right now.

Replacing a Heisman winner and a record-breaking QB in the same offseason is no small task. Deion Sanders knew exactly who his offense and defense ran through. Now, that entire identity has to shift. The portal worked with Shedeur and Travis because everyone wanted to play next to them. But that gravitational pull is gone. The real challenge now is proving that the system—not just the stars—can keep Colorado relevant at the top of the Big 12 standings.

Fornelli summed it up best: “Going into a Big 12 to which we talk about this all the time on the show, it is a coin flip league; there are a bunch of teams in this league where you look at every single matchup and it’s a three-point spread either side where you don’t know who’s going to win; there’s a lot of or there’s very little margin for error in the Big 12.” Look, the Big 12 is chaos, top to bottom. Every game? Basically a coin flip. The gap between the best and worst isn’t wide—it’s razor-thin.

Most matchups come down to a three-point spread, meaning no team can sleepwalk through Saturdays. You show up a little off, you lose. There’s zero margin for error, and in a league this wild, one bad bounce can tank your season. That’s the jungle Colorado’s walking into—and there’s no Shedeur or Travis Hunter to swing those close games anymore.

Tom Fornelli doubles down: “If they hit gold in the portal… this is a Buffalo team that could once again be competing for a Big 12 championship berth. If they don’t, things can go south pretty quick… Look at what happened to Utah last year… expected to win the league before the year, barely in contention by the end of it.” Colorado’s entire 2025 season might hinge on whether Coach Prime strikes gold in the spring transfer portal. The Buffs don’t have room for error in the ultra-tight Big 12, where every game feels like a coin flip. If Deion’s portal picks hit, Colorado might just sneak into the Big 12 title convo. But if they miss?

Just ask Utah how fast things can crumble. After finishing 10-4 in 2022 and 8-5 in the 2023 season. They entered last year with sky-high expectations… and ended up barely relevant by December after key injuries and misfires and finished 5-7. That’s the risk Colorado’s staring down—either they reload like contenders or collapse like pretenders.

Buffs offense: Cracks and gaps

The Buffs turned to Kaidon Salter, the Liberty transfer who once flashed star power. He exploded in 2023, tossing for 2,876 yards and rushing for over 1,000 more, leading Liberty to a New Year’s Six Bowl. If that version of Salter shows up in Boulder, Pat Shurmur’s QB-friendly scheme could unlock serious fireworks. But that’s a big “if,” and Fornelli isn’t handing out any benefit of the doubt. “Kaidon Salter who had a very solid year at Liberty two years ago, struggled a little bit last year. We know the ability is there for him to play well in an offense suited to his abilities, but did they have that superstar? Do they have that guy that can help them win a game when maybe they’re not at their best? Because that’s what they had in Hunter; that’s what they had in Shedeur Sanders.” 

That lack of margin for error makes Colorado’s spring portal activity absolutely critical. The Buffs ranked dead last in rushing among FBS teams last season, averaging just 65.2 yards per game. That’s why Deion brought in Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk to coach the running backs. The RB1 battle between Dallan Hayden, and Micah Welch is wide open, but if no one seizes that role, Colorado might have to dip into a spring portal that rarely produces stars. That forces Deion’s staff to either trust what they’ve got or take a calculated risk.

On the perimeter, there’s still some juice. Omarion Miller showed flashes of stardom with a 196-yard game against USC and another 145-yard day against Kansas State. Drelon Miller looks ready to make the leap after catching 32 balls as the WR5 last year. But the wildcard in this room is Kam Mikell. The No. 2-ranked athlete in the 2024 cycle didn’t play last season due to injury, but his 10.50-second 100-meter speed and two-way pedigree make him a candidate to blow the lid off this offense—if he stays healthy and the staff builds the right packages around him.

The Big 12 is a battlefield where every inch matters, and with a shaky start, the Buffs face a brutal reality—either they find their footing, or the winds of change will blow them off course. The challenge is clear: adapt or fade.