Colorado Buffaloes Football

Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders teased new custom cleats and seemed confident about going No. 1 overall in April's NFL draft during a conversation with his brother, safety Shilo Sanders, that was caught on camera during a practice leading up to the team's Alamo Bowl game against BYU on Saturday.

Deion Sanders Jr.'s Well Off Media captured the interaction, which begins at 5:23. The talk about the custom cleats and the No. 1 pick in particular starts at 6:24.

"We know where we're going, baby...We know where we're going, baby," Shedeur Sanders said. "You'll see them in the cleats later on this week."

Shilo Sanders then replied: "You don't know where you're going...bro, the team might trade up."

Shedeur Sanders then said: "You can't get higher than one."

Right now, the New York Giants hold the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft. They are certainly in need of a quarterback, especially after releasing Daniel Jones midseason.

Then there are five teams at 3-12, and right now, they are picking in the following order from No. 2 to No. 6: New England Patriots, Jacksonville Jaguars, Tennessee Titans, Cleveland Browns and Las Vegas Raiders.

The Pats and Jags are solid at QB with Drake Maye and Trevor Lawrence. The other three teams, for various reasons, will be in the market and could potentially trade up if needed.

At the moment, it appears to be a two-man race for QB1 between Sanders and Miami's Cam Ward, and that in turn could be a sprint to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft given the amount of losing teams in need of a quarterback.

Right now, Ward is No. 8 overall (QB1) on the B/R NFL Scouting Department big board, and Sanders is No. 9 overall (QB2).

So it'll be a fascinating race to see who emerges as the top QB, or if a wild card can come into play. It seems Sanders (and his father, Colorado head coach and Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders) are confident in the No. 1 overall pick prospect, though.

For now, fans await to see what cleats Sanders will be sporting for the Alamo Bowl, which will go down Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET in San Antonio.

Former USF safety Tawfiq Byard committed to Colorado on Tuesday, according to Hayes Fawcett of On3.com.

Byard is coming off a breakout sophomore season with the Bulls and still has three years of eligibility remaining.

He previously visited Colorado and met with head coach Deion Sanders on Friday, per SI.com's Zack Nagy. Byard also visited Virginia Tech, LSU and Vanderbilt before making his commitment decision.

He confirmed the transfer decision in a post on X.

Byard revealed that the Buffaloes' coaching staff, including defensive coordinator Rob Livingston, influenced his final choice.

"The defensive coordinator Rob Livingston we speak the same language," Byard said, via Steve Wiltfong of On3.com. "He's an NFL guy who coached a lot of good safeties. Also the staff Coach Prime hired. They make you feel welcomed and loved. To the academic people to Coach Prime himself everyone was welcoming!"

In 12 appearances with USF during the 2024 season, he racked up 54 tackles, eight tackles for loss, two sacks and one interception.

He's also the brother of Chicago Bears safety Kevin Byard.

The younger Byard should immediately contribute to a Buffaloes secondary that exceeded expectations in 2024 despite dealing with some inconsistency down the stretch of the season. Colorado finished with the sixth-best pass defense in the Big 12.

While Sanders' program hasn't been as active in the transfer portal compared to the end of his first season in Boulder, the Buffaloes' 2025 transfer class still ranks No. 14 in the country (via 247Sports).

Byard, Carter Stoutmire and Savion Riley are expected to compete for Colorado's starting safety positions next season.

Star players opting out of non-playoff games has become a regular occurrence in college football, but Colorado stars such as Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter will be suiting up for Saturday's Alamo Bowl against BYU.

Head coach Deion Sanders spoke to reporters about the situation Monday and explained players such as his son and Hunter will receive injury insurance for the game:

The decisions from Hunter and Sanders to play in the game stand out in particular, as they could be the top-two picks in the 2025 NFL draft. Tankathon projected just that to happen in its latest mock draft with Sanders going No. 1 overall to the New York Giants and Hunter going No. 2 overall to the New England Patriots.

B/R's NFL Scouting Department ranked Hunter as the top prospect and Sanders as the ninth-best prospect in its latest big board released last month.

Colorado will take the field Saturday after a nearly monthlong break between games. The Buffs closed out the regular season on Nov. 29 with a 52-0 shutout of Oklahoma State, which improved their record to 9-3.

It was quite the turnaround from last year's 4-8 campaign, and Colorado will look to close out the season on a high note with its star players taking the field against BYU.

Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter has high hopes for his NFL career, and high hopes for his Madden rating, too.

The Colorado two-way star and likely top-five pick in the 2025 NFL draft told Chad Johnson and Paul Burmeister of NBC Sports that he believes he should be an 85 overall when he hits the league next year.

Johnson, an official Madden ratings adjustor, countered that the best he could do for Hunter was a 76 as a rookie. Hunter, unsurprisingly, did not seem thrilled with that response.

It will be interesting to see how much Hunter's future NFL team allows him to play both ways. And, by proxy, how his Madden ranking stacks up as both a cornerback and receiver.

More than likely, Hunter will be a full-time cornerback and have some packages drawn up for him at wideout. But if anybody was going to play substantial snaps on both sides of the ball, it would be Hunter.

After putting on a show on the football field this season, Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter showcased their chemistry on the court.

The Colorado stars showed up prior to a men's basketball victory over Bellarmine on Saturday, with Sanders throwing an alley-oop off the backboard to Hunter.

Both players also received custom Buffaloes basketball jerseys.

The teammates helped lead Colorado to a 9-3 record this season, with the school appearing in a bowl game for the first time since 2020.

The Buffaloes will take on BYU in the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 28. Both players are expected to start in the matchup.

On Saturday, Hunter was recognized by the school for his recent Heisman Trophy victory. He was honored with a short presentation involving the trophy before the opening tip and the entire football team took the floor for a final send-off before heading to San Antonio for the upcoming bowl clash.

Hunter showed off his athleticism by throwing down several impressive dunks, catching the attention of Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant.

While the two-way standout has become known for his efforts at both cornerback and wide receiver on the field, he previously played point guard on his high school basketball team at Collins Hill.

Hunter is wrapping up an incredible 2024 campaign in Boulder, catching 92 passes for 1,152 yards and 14 touchdowns. He also racked up 32 tackles, 11 passes defensed and four interceptions to go along with a forced fumble.

Sanders also made strides throughout his second year with the Buffaloes, completing 74.2 percent of his passes for 3,926 yards and 35 touchdowns compared to eight interceptions. He finished No. 8 in 2024 Heisman voting.

The pair of teammates are on track to hear their names called early in the 2025 NFL draft, but they stopped by the CU Events Center to have some fun on the court first.

Deion Sanders says NFL teams shouldn't consider drafting reigning Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter this spring unless they are willing to play him at both wide receiver and cornerback.

"Travis could definitely do that." Sanders told Rich Eisen on Friday about Hunter playing two positions in the NFL (3:12 mark of the video below.) "I mean, he's gonna do that, or they shouldn't draft him. Don't do that.

"And I'm going to make sure of that. Don't draft him if you're not going to give him an opportunity to play on both sides of the ball."

Sanders continued: "Now, you can be creative, he don't have to do what we did with him here, and play every snap. But, just say he's starting the corner, he's going to have to be on your nickel packages, or your spread packages on the offense.

"Because he's going to be probably your best receiver, and you're going to look like an idiot with your best receiver sitting on the bench, and you can't get open, you can't get the ball down the field. Or vice versa. Your best corner isn't on the field, and they're bombing you right now, and he's on the sideline with you."

Hunter claimed the Heisman Trophy as the best player in college football after playing 84 percent of Colorado's snaps last season.

He took 669 snaps on defense and 687 on offense, in total taking more than 400 snaps more than the next closest FBS player.

Fox Sports' Jay Glazer reported earlier this week that he had asked 13 head coaches and general managers where they believed Hunter would play in the NFL.

Out of those surveyed, 12 expected him to primarily work as a defender while making some contributions on offense, according to Glazer.

"They all said, even though we'd start him at cornerback, we'd definitely find packages we'd play for him on the offensive side of the ball," Glazer said.

Sanders primarily played as a defensive back during his own 14-season NFL career. His best campaign as a two-way player came during the 1996 season for the Dallas Cowboys, during which he made 33 tackles while also recording 36 receptions.

It sounds like Sanders is hoping Hunter will find a similar path to success on both sides of the ball after the Buffaloes' two-way star enters the upcoming NFL draft as a potential No. 1 pick this April.

Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders reportedly has a little more work to do to become the first quarterback off the board in the 2025 NFL Draft.

Jeff Howe of The Athletic reported that Miami quarterback Cam Ward is the current favorite to be the top signal-caller selected and that Sanders needs to "nail the interview process" to claim the QB1 mantle.

"Miami's Cam Ward has the early lead on the race for the draft's QB1, while Colorado's Shedeur Sanders will have his supporters among teams," Howe wrote. "Sanders will need to nail the interview process to solidify himself in the top two, according to a couple of NFL personnel evaluators."

Ward's production in 2024 makes quite a case to be the top quarterback. He threw for 4,123 yards with 36 touchdowns and seven interceptions with a completion percentage of 67.4. The 22-year-old was named the ACC Offensive Player of the Year, led the Hurricanes to a 10-2 record and was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy.

Sanders' season was excellent as well as he threw for 3,926 yards with 35 touchdowns and eight interceptions and a completion percentage of 74.2. He was named the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year, leading Colorado to a 9-3 regular season.

Both Ward and Sanders are expected to play in their teams' respective Bowl Games. They'll then turn their attention to the scouting circuit and the 2025 combine as they look to sell themselves to prospective teams on their fit at the next level.

Colorado reportedly has found its heir apparent at the quarterback position amid the impending departure of 2025 NFL draft prospect Shedeur Sanders.

According to Pete Nakos of On3.com, former Liberty quarterback Kaidon Salter has committed to transfer to Colorado and play under head coach Deion Sanders next season.

After spending the last four seasons with Liberty, Salter announced his intentions to transfer earlier this month in a statement posted to social media. Nakos previously reported that Colorado was on Salter's list of schools to visit along with Florida State and Syracuse and also named UCLA and Auburn as programs interested in landing him through the transfer portal.

Salter appeared in 35 career games for the Flames and ended his tenure with the program with career numbers of 5,887 passing yards, 56 touchdowns, and 17 interceptions plus 2,013 rushing yards and 21 more scores. He redshirted his first year with the team before appearing in 33 games and making 29 starts over the last three seasons.

Salter garnered national attention during his exceptional 2023 campaign where he led Liberty to a 13-1 record, a Conference USA championship and an appearance in the Fiesta Bowl. He set single-season program records with 32 passing touchdowns and 1,089 rushing yards, though his production dipped this year.

In 2024, Salter threw for 1,886 yards, 15 touchdowns and six interceptions while adding 587 rushing yards and seven scores as the Flames finished with an 8-3 record.

It won't be easy to fill the shoes of Shedeur Sanders, who established himself as one of the top quarterbacks in the nation over his two seasons with the Buffaloes. However, it can be expected that Coach Prime will do everything in his power to bring out the best in Salter as Colorado continues its quest for national prominence next season.

Shedeur Sanders has confidence in himself regardless of where he ends up in the NFL draft.

"Wherever things end up I'll be fine," the Colorado quarterback said (2:35 mark) when discussing his immediate future and the time he spent in New York.

The comments come amid plenty of buzz about him potentially ending up on the Las Vegas Raiders or New York Giants.

And Sanders did nothing to quiet that buzz when he recently shared an Instagram story with Las Vegas' Allegiant Stadium captioned with the word "legendary" and played catch with Giants star Malik Nabers:

B/R's NFL Scouting Department listed Sanders as the No. 9 overall player and No. 2 quarterback behind Miami's Cam Ward in last month's big board of NFL draft prospects. It also ranked Sanders as the most pro-ready signal-caller and the most accurate one.

He will surely be an early pick, and the Giants and Raiders are in line to land the top two selections at 2-12 overall. Neither of them have franchise quarterbacks in place, so the speculation surrounding them and Sanders will surely continue leading into April's draft.

Sanders made it clear he would be happy with any destination.

Colorado football head coach and Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders is bullish on Bill Belichick's chances to excel with UNC, so much so that he thinks it'll be easier for the six-time Super Bowl champion head coach to find success in Chapel Hill than he did with the New England Patriots.

Sanders made his remarks on the Pacman Jones Show (h/t TMZ Sports).

"Bill Belichick is Bill Belichick," he said.

"The track record stands alone. No one in the NFL has accomplished what he's accomplished. Making that translate to college football, I feel like that's an easier role to come to college football and have success than it is to rekindle that fire he had in New England."

Sanders also made clear that he's a friend of Belichick.

"I love Coach Belichick, man," Sanders added. "I'm a fan and not only that, I like to be known as a friend of Coach Belichick. I love what he's doing, I'm happy about it."

Sanders has found his own success at Colorado, turning a 1-11 program the year before his arrival into a 9-3 team that's 20th in the Associated Press poll.

Belichick, of course, also found great success in the NFL, winning two Super Bowls as the New York Giants' defensive coordinator in 1986 and 1990 before adding six more as the Patriots' head coach (2001, 2003, 2004, 2014, 2016, 2018).

After a year away from coaching, Belichick is embarking on a brand-new challenge. He's joining UNC on a five-year deal ($10 million per season). It's a stark transition for someone who coached in the NFL ranks in various capacities from 1975-2023.

Belichick did grow up watching his father, Steve Belichick, coach and scout at Navy for nearly his entire childhood. The elder Belichick also coached at UNC from 1953-1955.

Now his son is back there seven decades later, hoping to become the fourth head coach in football history to win an NCAA championship and Super Bowl alongside Jimmy Johnson, Barry Switzer and Pete Carroll.