This past season was a memorable one for Deion Sanders' Colorado football team.
Coach Prime engineered the best season the program has experienced since 2016, posting a 9-4 record and a first-place tie atop the Big 12 standings. The roster featured a record-setting quarterback under center and a two-way star and Heisman Memorial Trophy winner.
In 2025, the goal for Sanders is clear: make the College Football Playoff.
Since making the jump from Jackson State to Colorado back in December 2022, Sanders has not been shy about saying that earning selection to the College Football Playoff is his program's aspiration.
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In a league where the program picked to finish dead last in the preseason football media poll turned around and won the whole thing (Arizona State), there's no reason not to believe Colorado can win the Big 12 title and punch its ticket to the CFP this season.
However, in order to do that, Sanders must replace a number of stars on both sides of the ball, including arguably the two biggest names in the sport in Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter.
Here's a breakdown of how Colorado can remain a Big 12 contender in the post-Sanders, Hunter era:
What is Colorado's plan at QB?
The plan at quarterback is fairly orthodox in the modern era of the sport. Colorado flipped longtime USC commit Julian "JuJu" Lewis in November to secure the program's quarterback of the future. Lewis, who put together a 39-4 record as a starter in three years at Carrollton High School (Georgia), will likely sit behind the team's quarterback of the present: Kaidon Salter.
After a rocky start to his career — dismissed from Tennessee as an underclassman — Salter emerged as a starter at Liberty, leading the Flames to their first undefeated regular season and bid to a New Year's Six Bowl in school history in 2023 in his first full season as a starter.
After passing for 5,887 yards and rushing for 2,063 yards at Liberty — including 2,876 passing yards and 1,089 rushing yards in 2023 — he figures to slot into Colorado offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur's QB-friendly scheme.
If Salter returns to his 2023 form, there's little reason to believe he can't be one of the nation's best quarterbacks. But he'll need help.
Is there a playmaker on offense that the team can rely on?
Along with presumptive first-round NFL Draft selections in Sanders and Hunter, the Buffaloes must replace a trio of playmakers on the perimeter with wideouts Will Sheppard, Jimmy Horne Jr. and LaJohntay Wester all headed to the pros.
Salter will have to form chemistry with a new crop of players who have not played as many snaps as their predecessors but have shown promise. Wide receiver Omarion Miller could be the next great deep threat for the Buffaloes. He recorded 196 yards receiving against USC as a true freshman in 2023 and put up 145 receiving yards against Kansas State as a sophomore.
Alongside Omarion Miller, Drelon Miller also figures to play a bigger role in the offense next season. Drelon Miller caught 32 passes for 277 receiving yards as the fifth receiving option in 2024. It's easy to see that total doubling if he becomes a steady No. 2 pass-catcher in 2025.
But the player I'm most interested in seeing is Kam Mikell, the nation's No. 2-ranked athlete in 2024. Mikell didn't play in 2024 due to injury, but his pedigree leads me to believe he could be one of the Big 12's breakout stars in 2025. His versatility could lead to unique playcalls and packages as Mikell was a dynamic prep player as a rusher, passer and defensive back. He also boasts a 10.50-second 100-meter dash.
What are the biggest needs Colorado must fill in the portal this spring?
Colorado needs a playmaker at running back. When Sanders hired Pro Football Hall of Famer and former NFL MVP Marshall Faulk to coach running backs earlier this year, that message couldn't have been made more clear.
The Buffaloes ranked dead last in rushing last season among FBS teams with just 65.2 yards per game. While Shurmur's offense is going to highlight quarterbacks, being credible on the ground is a necessity if this team plans to play in the CFP in 2025.
With running backs Dallan Hayden, Micah Welch and Isaiah Augustave entering the spring in a battle to find out who will be RB1, there's nothing wrong with Faulk going into the spring portal and pulling out a running back he knows can help the Buffaloes right away. But that's not likely to happen, given the current crop of available players at that position.
If a program is shopping for a portal player in the spring, they likely missed badly in the winter. Starters are swapped in the winter portal, and backups are swapped in the spring. Better to bide your time and save your money.
Which games on Colorado's 2025 schedule could make or break this team's season?
Right now? Get past Georgia Tech.
The Buffaloes open this season against a Brent Key-coached team that knocked off No. 10 Florida State and No. 4 Miami last season. No. 6 Georgia needed eight overtimes to defeat the Yellowjackets — at Sanford Stadium.
In a game that features the two programs that split the 1990 national title, the Buffaloes will face yet another difficult season-opener for a third-consecutive season. Every team the Buffaloes have opened against in the Deion Sanders era has either made the CFP, the FCS playoffs or gone bowling the year before.
Other games that figure to test this team: vs. BYU on Sept. 27, vs. Iowa State on Oct. 11, vs. Arizona State on Nov. 22.
RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the podcast "The Number One College Football Show." Follow him on Twitter at @RJ_Young and subscribe to "The RJ Young Show" on YouTube.
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