He may not have proven to be a first-round draft pick, but the Colorado Buffaloes are sorely missing the services of Shedeur Sanders right now. Even though they’ve only played two games, head coach Deion Sanders has already rotated through three different quarterbacks, and none of them have been able to make a convincing case as to why they should be the starter.
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If that wasn’t enough, the Buffaloes are also beginning to see a decline in their overall NIL totals. Not a single member of the current roster ranks inside the top 15 in terms of NIL valuations, which is a far cry from what fans saw last year when both Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter were still members of the herd.
In fact, prior to Arch Manning, the 2024 Golden Arm winner was the proud owner of the highest NIL valuation in the history of college athletics. According to On3sports, the second-generation athlete boasted an astounding $6.5-million NIL valuation.
The NFL Hall of Famer in Sanders has undoubtedly elevated the program, as he’s directly responsible for an influx in both business and profits for the town of Boulder. Now that his two stars are gone, however, many are beginning to wonder, if not outright fear, that the former Atlanta Falcon will be unable to secure future high-end players.
Colorado’s biggest player today, perhaps in terms of both stature and NIL valuations, is Jordan Seaton. The sophomore offensive tackle has three deals to his name, and currently sports a valuation of $1.6 million, making him the 26th highest paid player in college football.
Unfortunately, even the pricey services of Seaton haven’t necessarily paid off for the Buffaloes. Their offensive line seems as somber as ever through what has now been three weeks of play, causing a fair share of trouble for each of their three different signal callers.
The program was able to snag a five-star recruit in Julian Lewis, but after a poorly-executed drive against Delaware, there’s now some concerns surrounding his future as well. Colorado wasn’t inherently effective at recruiting this past off season, and they are now feeling the pain that comes with having a lackluster class.
Last year, the Buffaloes were enjoying Heisman trophy ceremonies and talks of a potential spot in the national rankings. Now, they’ll be grateful to scrape together enough wins to justify another bowl game.
Suffice to say, even though they have one of the best players in NFL history as the face of their recruiting campaign, the Buffaloes are still struggling to add valuable members to their herd. After all, a charismatic head coach doesn’t necessarily mean that money is going into your pocket.
Sanders will have to find a way to up the ante in his sales pitch a bit, otherwise he’ll risk seeing the Buffalo return to extinction in the world of college football.
