Devin Rispress
Devin Rispress excited after joining a "damn good" recruiting staff at Colorado
Colorado got a steal when Devin Rispress decided to come aboard Deion Sanders' staff in Boulder. The former Florida A&M recruiting ace knows how to bring in talent and was already an established force in college athletics. He brings that expertise at just the right time. An up and coming program in the midst of transitioning back to the Big 12 conference, which is now spread across three time zones. It will give the Buffs more ground to cover and will have UCF on the schedule as a regular foe in Rispress' home state.
Sanders has established a "Florida Pipeline" with 18 players from the Sunshine State currently on CU's roster. That number will grow exponentially with Rispress working his connection to add players. It also doesn't hurt recruiting efforts for Colorado to bring the "Prime Effect" to the recruiting hotbed of the south.
Most people say Texas high school football is king, but the numbers say otherwise. The Florida-Georgia region has 29 players in the 2024 ESPN Top 100. The Lone Star State has a total of 17 and none are in the top five. Not to say Texas isn't relevant, because it still very much will be key for CU recruiting efforts, especially in the Big 12. But what's cooking in the deep south will need more of an effort. Rispress is the right man to tap into what he has built over the course of decades.
"Florida has some of the best athletes in the country," Rispress noted. "The biggest thing is going to be past relationships that I've had with kids and high school programs in Florida and the surrounding states. I'm the type of recruiter who was not afraid to offer five-and-four-star guys at FAMU. They've been following my journey and now we have more resources at Colorado and can put them on a bigger stage."
The Tallahassee native was a star high school running back who grew up admiring Sanders' journey starting with his "Prime Time" days at FSU. The Hall-of-Famer was ahead of his time in many ways. He has now transitioned to a different chapter of his life and wants to help develop the next wave of coaches. Rispress is grateful to be a part of it all with "one of his favorite athletes" at Colorado.
"I loved what the coaches were building at Colorado," Rispress said. "I was a fan from afar. I was coaching at FAMU, but I was still a fan. When Coach Prime took the job, I instantly became a fan."
Rispress' journey has been unconventional to say the least. He never thought he would end up in education, especially in the world of coaching. But it was the route that fell into place, as some would say, 'God's plan', that allowed him to use his talent to inspire others. There was a time when playing in the NFL was the goal. When that was no longer an option, Rispress found himself trying to re-invent his craft. What was next for him was starting at the Pop Warner level. He said it made him fall in love with the game all over again.
From there, Rispress was offered a job coaching high school football in his hometown by Alabama's former recruiting coordinator Ronnie Cottrell. It was an enticing offer with one small problem. Rispress had no degree to his name and would need one to take the new career further down the road. Cottrell, who once offered Rispress an opportunity in Tuscaloosa as a player, decided he was too good of a coach not to take a chance on. Rispress was sent off to school and the rest is history. He took on a few positions before getting the call at FAMU.
Rispress went from winning the high of a Celebration Bowl victory with the Rattlers to being at Colorado under Corey Phillips and competing at the top level with all eyes on the Buffaloes. While it's been a whirlwind process, there has been a lot more controversy surrounding Coach Prime since he arrived on campus a little over a year ago. The hate is real with opposing programs using negative tactics aimed at the Buffs. Whether it's Jordan Seaton being asked if he was going to Colorado to "be a rapper" or Justin Mayer being told not to drink the "Deion Sanders Kool Aid," it's all noise not being heard by CU's staff.
"Good recruiters and coaches don't recruit negatively," Rispress said. " They don't talk to anyone about other programs to try and make themselves look good. They just don't. Some people do, but the good-hearted ones don't. My mom taught me a long time ago as a kid, "If you don't have anything good to say, don't say anything at all."
Rispress is already hard at work at Colorado. You'll see definite changes with his stamp on them going into year two of the Prime era in Boulder. He's soaking up the experience and admitted that he joined a "damn good" recruiting staff.
If this year is any indication of what the future holds for CU Football, the Big 12 might have the Buffs in the driver seat. One of the best combined recruiting classes in history with 30 new players currently on the books in 2024. There were a total of 24 players via transfer portal and six high school recruits for the 21st overall ranked class, according to 247Sports. Five-star Jordan Seaton came to Colorado as the nation's top lineman from IMG Academy. He was joined by eleven four-star players, which is the most in CU history.
