Coach Prime Says Buffs Are Ready For Opener
August 29, 2023 | Football, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Colorado's Deion "Coach Prime" Sanders made it clear Tuesday at his weekly press conference.
The Buffaloes are ready.
Ready for Saturday's 10 a.m. season opener against 17th-ranked TCU at Amon Carter Stadium (Fox). Ready for the near-100 degree heat forecast for Saturday in Fort Worth.
And perhaps most importantly, ready for the big stage.
That stage includes a national television audience, what is expected to be a sold-out TCU stadium, and the eyes of a college football nation eager to get the answer to one question:
Just how good can the team that underwent one of the most dramatic roster rebuilds in the modern history of college football be?
"These kids are ready," Sanders proclaimed. "Practice-wise, these guys have been getting after it and I'm proud of them. They've been working their butts off and they've kind of challenged one another."
Sanders placed an emphasis on that challenge Tuesday morning. In place of his daily "morning message" to the team, he asked players what they needed to accomplish to be dominant in Saturday's game.
He wrote their answers on the board, then told them, "OK, now go out there and practice and do it. Don't wait until Saturday to do it. Do it now. So I'm happy with our young men. I really am."
The Buffs are coming off what was by all accounts a solid fall camp. CU's offense made great strides under the direction of coordinator Sean Lewis while Charles Kelly's defense — rebuilt from front to back — also settled into a groove over the last couple weeks of camp.
The Buffs' offense, led by quarterback Shedeur Sanders and bolstered by a healthy corps of talented running backs and receivers, is geared to move fast. But there's no doubt that the tempo the Buffs want to establish will depend on the offensive line, a group that made significant strides from the opening of fall camp.
That means giving Sanders time to operate in the pocket.
"I would like to feel real good and I feel good about protecting (No.) two," Coach Prime said. "You protect two, give him a clean pocket, it's going to be some problems."
Sanders clearly has respect for TCU coach Sonny Dykes and the Horned Frogs, who made a magical run last year to the national title game before suffering a 65-7 beatdown at the hands of Georgia.
"Great coaching staff," Sanders said. "They did the unthinkable last year and I'm proud of them … They lost a lot of men, really good football players, and they replaced them with pretty good football players. One thing about that team and their head coach, they will be prepared. They will be fundamentally sound. They will come out emotional, play with emotion, trying to atone for last season the way that ended. But man, this team is a good football team. I can't wait to get there and see how we stand up to the challenge."
But while there will no doubt be a curiosity factor about the Horned Frogs and whether they can approach last year's effort, the bigger question mark will no doubt be the Buffaloes.
Sanders is convinced his team can answer the bell.
"They came here because they wanted it," he said. "They came here because they wanted the light, they wanted the smoke, they wanted the attention … These kids are ready. We prepare them not just athletically, we prepare them mentally for things and challenges that are going to happen in life as well. I like what I see on a daily basis."
BUFFS NOTES: Sanders said he "gets a great night's sleep" when he thinks of his running backs room. Transfers Alton McCaskill and Kavosiey Smoke, incoming freshman Dylan Edwards and returnee Anthony Hankerson give the Buffs a diverse bunch that can run inside with power while also presenting the threat of going the distance on every play.
McCaskill has been in a non-contact jersey for most of fall camp, and Sanders wouldn't commit as to whether he would be available Saturday.
"I told him personally, we're in it for the long haul," Sanders said. "We're not in it for the sprint. Although we like to win, win, win, win and we will win, win, win in due time, we just want to make sure he's OK and not just throw him out there in the fire when he's not prepared. When he plays, we want him to be the guy that he was."
Edwards, though, might be a critical weapon for the CU offense.
"Dylan's a home run waiting to happen," Sanders said.
BROWN DECISION: Sanders expressed disappointment with the NCAA's decision not to grant offensive lineman Tyler Brown a waiver for immediate eligibility.
Brown, who transferred in from Jackson State, asked for the waiver because it is his second transfer. He played at JSU after leaving Louisiana.
Sanders said Brown deals with some issues that he hoped the NCAA would recognize.
"Tyler Brown is a wonderful kid, but he deals with a lot of issues inside," Sanders said. "He's seeing specialists and seeing people to really deal with these issues and calm these things down … But some things just don't make sense. You say you really care about mental health but when you have someone really dealing with mental health, there's a problem, and then ostracizing him and not allowing him to do what he's blessed and gifted to do and the thing that presents some peace."
Sanders then questioned the NCAA's judgment in the situation.
"It's like, wow, do you really care? Are you just saying you care? Are you caring when it's convenient? When it's profitable?"
GOOD EARLY TEST: Buffs safety Trevor Woods, one of a handful of returning players from last year, said the opener should be a good barometer.
"It's a good test early," he said. "We can really see where we are. You're really getting to see how you are in the national ranks kind of, so that's something we are looking forward to."
