Blue Chip 2026 QB Jaden O'Neal enjoys visit with Deion Sanders and Colorado

Highly-ranked Golden State passer takes in the sights and sounds of Boulder

Jaden O'Neal/CU Buffs

The Colorado Buffaloes are searching for the next option at quarterback with Shedeur Sanders planning to exit for the NFL. They've entertained different recruits with Harbor City (Calif.) Narbonne's Jaden O’Neal being the latest. 

The four-star 2026 recruit paid a visit to Boulder recently and spent time with Deion Sanders and his staff. He had a great experience and is mulling over all of the schools on his radar. Colorado is in the running with Oklahoma, Miami, and FSU just to name a few. There are schools offering O'Neal with over a full year left in his recruiting process.   

“Colorado is going amazing,” O’Neal told On3. “One big takeaway is Coach Deion is an old school coach who takes much pride in character and integrity with the players he recruits.” He went on to say, “I’m loving the coach staff and how experienced they are having NFL experience truly draws my eye to this school."

O'Neal threw for 2,475 passing yards and 27 touchdowns in 11 games as a sophomore at Newport Beach (Calif.) in 2023. He transferred to Narbonne during the offseason and will work to be immersed in a new system. One of the best pure western passers in his class who shined at the Elite 11 regional camp. 

"After a great workout and conversation, I'm blessed to receive an offer from the University of Colorado," O'Neal posted on X (Formerly Twitter) last month. "Huge thanks to Deion Sanders and Coach Pat Shurmur for blessing me with this opportunity to further my education."

O’Neal is currently noted as the nation’s No. 6 quarterback and top 100 consensus prospect, according to 247Sports.