Tar'Varish Dawson dismissed from Colorado Buffaloes football team

Auburn transfer says he will re-enter the portal this spring

Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Tar'Varish Dawson says he's no longer with Deion Sanders and Colorado. The wide receiver was dismissed from the program after dealing with a personal matter last week.

An original four-star from Auburn, Dawson came to Boulder as Coach Prime original transfer portal class last year. He was a highly-touted athlete coming out of Sanders' hometown of Fort Myers and ranked as a consensus top 50 recruit with Second-Team All-Florida honors. His coach at Lehigh Senior was current Colorado Director of Player Development James Chaney.

"I'm disappointed that I'm no longer with my teammates at Colorado," Dawson told BuffsBeat. "It's an unfortunate situation, but I'm excited for my future and being able to take my talents elsewhere. I'm thankful for the opportunity Coach Prime and his staff gave me in Boulder. I'm just a kid from Fort Myers like he was and it means a lot. With that said, I'm ready to work and will be entering the transfer portal this spring."

The 5-foot-11, 170-pounder appeared in seven games for the Buffs in 2023. Dawson started four games when Travis Hunter was sidelined due to a lacerated liver. He recorded 14 receptions for 124 receiving yards and a touchdown, to go along with one carry for eight yards and one touchdown on the ground. This includes a career best performance at home vs. Nebraska.

Many speculated about Dawson's status with the team after he was left off Colorado's spring roster last week. He was listed at the fourth option on the Buffs unofficial depth chart going into offseason conditioning drills.

Sanders has brought in three additional receivers via the transfer portal for newly-hired position coach Jason Phillips. Colorado has perhaps the deepest wideout room in the nation led by Hunter, who's likely entering his final collegiate season in Boulder.

The Buffs are preparing for the Black and Gold Spring Game on April 27.