Forde-Yard Dash: Deion Sanders, Colorado Back Up Offseason Full of Big Talk

Sanders told anyone who would listen that the Buffaloes would be players in 2023—and he's kept a list of all those who didn't believe him.

Forty names, games, teams and minutiae making news in college football (receipts sold separately in Boulder):

FIRST QUARTER: A DEBUT FOR THE AGES

The conventional wisdom for coaches coming into a season is to under-promise and over-deliver. As is the case with almost every aspect of how he does the job, Deion Sanders (1) flouted that convention. He over-promised AND over-delivered in a Colorado debut for the ages. He backed up an endless stream of big talk. He absolutely seized the moment in a way few could have honestly seen coming.

Sanders arrived in Boulder to a thunderclap of hype and excitement, all but guaranteed immediate success, completely blew up the roster, made people very uncomfortable with his non-traditional approach, had the coaching industry chirping (anonymously) about how bad his team would be … and then authored a massive upset of TCU, the program that played in the College Football Playoff championship game last year. His first game as a power-conference coach became a Ruthian called shot, a Joe Namath moment, and perhaps the first inkling of a paradigm shift in the sport.

In his Colorado debut, Sanders led the Buffaloes to a wild 45–42 win over last year’s No. 2 team :: Tim Heitman/USA TODAY Sports

If this is the start of something big, think of the schools in the South that have never hired a Black head coach and chose not to hire Sanders (2), a man who was born in Florida, went to college in Florida, played professional sports in Georgia and Texas and coached in Mississippi. Administrators at Auburn and Georgia Tech, to name two that made hires this past year, better hope their guys work out.

Sanders makes many ADs nervous because he has no filter and no fear of PR backlash. The parade of “told you so” comments Saturday? Every coach in the country would like to say the same thing after victories, but most don’t. Sanders is as outwardly cocky as many of the best coaches are inwardly. (He was that way as a player as well. Anyone expecting that to change when he became a coach was naive.)

Where all other coaches name captains and put a “C” on their jerseys, Sanders uses an “L” and a “D.” The “L” is for Leader, and that was on the uniform of the quarterback and coach’s son, Shedeur Sanders (3). He earned that pretty well with a 510-yard passing performance.

Sanders set a new school record with 510 passing yards in his first game with Colorado, adding four touchdowns / Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

The “D” is for Dawg, and that very appropriately went to two-way marvel Travis Hunter (4). Sanders’ deploying of Hunter at both defensive back and wide receiver will be another dynamic to watch for imitators.

HISTORICAL PRECEDENT

What Hunter did Saturday evoked comparisons to Shohei Otani, but in football terms it is difficult to find anything like his marathon effort in the last 35 years. Even those who excelled at playing both wideout and DB—Heisman Trophy winner Charles Woodson at Michigan, Hall of Famer Champ Bailey at Georgia, Ohio State standout Chris Gamble—didn’t turn in games with 100 receiving yards and an interception. (And what an interception it was, an amazing combination of anticipation and athleticism.) Hunter playing 129 snaps was an incredible display of stamina, especially when factoring in the Texas heat and how many of those plays were sprints all over the field. Dawg, indeed.

In another classic example of how Sanders is not like any of his coaching peers, he started politicking for Hunter for the Heisman Trophy at halftime of the season opener, chirping that if Hunter had held on to a couple of deep balls, the Heisman “is at his crib chillin’ right now.” It’s also a potentially useful bit of recruiting propaganda. You don’t think versatile five-star recruits would like to play for a coach who A) uses them on both sides of the ball and B) campaigns for them to win the Heisman in the middle of a game on Sept. 2?

In terms of precedent for Hunter, we probably have to dial back to Holy Cross’s Gordie Lockbaum (5), who finished third in the 1987 Heisman Trophy race and fifth in ’86. He reportedly played 143 snaps in a game against Army in ’87 while going both ways at defensive back and running back/receiver. And Lockbaum was a compete outlier at the time. Before him we’re looking at the 1960s, most likely.

Hunter was all over the field against TCU, leading the team with 11 receptions and hauling in a crucial pick in the red zone :: LM Otero/AP

Finding historical precedent for what Sanders and the Buffaloes did in Fort Worth is tricky. Before Saturday, six FBS coaches in the last decade had pulled off upsets in their first game at their new school as a double-digit underdog, including some notable names (Mack Brown, Mike Leach, Greg Schiano). As a 20.5-point underdog, Sanders did something that in that time had never been surpassed and only equaled once: Everett Withers and Texas State over Ohio in 2016 at the same point spread. (It was not a sign of greatness to come; Withers was fired after three seasons with a 7-28 record.)

But then later Saturday, the current first-year Texas State coach—G.J. Kinne (6)—outdid Coach Prime by leading the Bobcats past Baylor as a 27.5-point ‘dog. What do Sanders and Kinne have in common? They both performed wholesale roster makeovers via the portal. (If you think there is too much transfer movement as is in college football, it will only accelerate if both Colorado and Texas State sustain their startling starts. Coaches will be flipping rosters like pancakes.)

Both Kinne this year and Withers in 2016 had the advantage of sneaking up on their opponents. Sanders did not, coming off one of the more heralded arrivals in the history of the sport. So beyond point spreads, what is the historical comparison? A few options:

Jimmy Johnson’s first game as coach of the Miami Hurricanes was an upset of No. 1 Auburn in 1984, but the ‘Canes were the reigning national champions and ranked No. 10 themselves. Danny Ford had just been promoted to head coach at Clemson before the 1978 Gator Bowl, wherein the Tigers beat Ohio State and ended Woody Hayes’ career after he punched Charlie Bauman. R.C. Slocum’s Texas A&M debut was an upset of No. 7 LSU in 1989.

And then there is the Notre Dame division. Fighting Irish coaches often start boldly, whether it was Terry Brennan beating No. 4 Texas in 1954; Ara Parseghian beating Wisconsin in 1964; Tyrone Willingham beating No. 22 Maryland in 2002; or Charlie Weis over No. 23 Pittsburgh in ’05.

Clearly, not all of those flashy first wins worked out over the long term. We’ll see whether Sanders is the Len of 2023, a one-hit wonder. But the hit was a grand slam, and the nation will be watching closely again this week when Colorado hosts Nebraska. The Prime Effect is growing.

FOUR FOR THE PLAYOFF

Each week The Dash will pick the four playoff teams as if today were Selection Sunday. As always, preseason rankings are tossed aside now that we have actual, on-field results to go on. And until your team has played somebody, it’s not making the Dash bracket—which, this week, is an ACC vs. Pac-12 invitational. (This could change pending results of Clemson-Duke Monday night.)

Sugar Bowl: No. 1 seed Florida State (7) vs. No. 4 Colorado (8).

The Seminoles (1-0) easily scored the most impressive victory of Week One, blowing away LSU in the second half of a showdown game in Orlando. That rather nicely backed up a lot of bold talk about FSU’s return to prominence. If it weren’t for Travis Hunter, ’Noles receiver Keon Coleman would be the star of Week One. Next up for Florida State: Southern Mississippi.

The Buffaloes (1-0) drop in out of the clouds for all the reasons listed above. Other revelations from Saturday: freshman running back Dylan Edwards; offensive coordinator Sean Lewis, formerly the head coach at Kent State; and a more dependable offensive line than expected. The defense still needs work. Next up for Colorado: Nebraska.

Rose Bowl: No. 2 Utah (9) vs. No. 3 North Carolina (10).

The Utes (1-0) dominated Florida without their starting quarterback, Cam Rising, and their standout tight end, Brent Kuithe. They simply did what they do: fast and physical defense; efficient offense that was augmented by a 70-yard TD bomb; zero turnovers; just 35 yards in penalties. Never doubt Kyle Whittingham. Next up for Utah: at Baylor.

The Tar Heels (1-0) flashed some vastly improved defense in thumping South Carolina, recording nine sacks and allowing just 351 yards of offense. Heisman candidate quarterback Drake Maye didn’t even have to be superhuman (269 passing yards, two touchdowns, two interceptions) for UNC to win comfortably. Next up for North Carolina: Appalachian State.

Also considered: Washington, Ohio State, Penn State, Fresno State, Texas State, Northern Illinois.