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When you're talking about Colorado football now, if the attention isn’t on head coach Deion Sanders, also known as Coach Prime, it’s likely on Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter, the star players of the team.
Shedeur Sanders is not just the starting quarterback but also the son of Deion Sanders. And Hunter, at this point, might as well be his son. The wide receiver and cornerback followed the Buffaloes’ second-year head coach all the way from Jackson State.
It’s not just nepotism that has made Sanders and Hunter well-known — they are two of the most talented players in college football at their respective positions. If you’re Hunter, there are two of those, which is why he has been named to multiple preseason All-American teams for the 2024 season. Sanders was left off the AP's preseason list, though that doesn't change anything regarding this year’s Colorado football team and its success.
This year's Colorado football team can't be all about Sanders and Hunter, right? Though Coach Prime will be relying on his son and his non-biological one to be the team’s leaders, for the Buffaloes to improve beyond their four wins from a season ago, relying on more talent will be imperative. One of those pieces of talent will be wide receiver Will Sheppard.
Will Sheppard could be the X-factor for Colorado football in 2024
First of all, let’s point out that if the offensive line isn’t improved in the least bit, all of this is a moot point. That goes for Sanders as well, who took 52 sacks last season. If Sanders doesn't have enough time to get the ball out to his receivers, then the Buffaloes stand about as much chance in games as they did last season when, after winning three straight, they lost eight of their last nine.
However, if there’s at least some consistency and improvement on the offensive front, Sanders will have a plethora of skill position players to facilitate the ball to. This is a group that returns not just Hunter, but also their other top receivers, Jimmy Horn Jr. and Omarion Miller, who accounted for a total of 11 touchdowns. But Sheppard could be the piece no one is talking about yet could be the biggest addition to this year’s squad.
Sheppard is probably being overlooked because of where he came from—Vanderbilt, which finished 2-10 last season and hasn’t won more than five games in a single season over the last half-decade. He's one of the many transfer portal additions the Buffaloes welcome this season.
In his four seasons in Nashville, Sheppard accumulated 152 receptions, 2,067 yards, and 21 touchdowns. When you consider the talent Vanderbilt is working with, these are some pretty impressive numbers, especially against stiff SEC competition. The super-fast receiver has been clocked at just over 20 mph, according to Reel Analytics, making him a major weapon for Sanders and the Buffaloes offense this season.
It doesn’t hurt that Sheppard is becoming a standout in fall camp so far, which, again, wouldn’t be the easiest thing to do among a talented group of receivers.
“I’ve seen everything that we anticipated seeing when we brought him in here,” Colorado football receivers coach Jason Phillips said, according to Brian Howell of Prairie Mountain Media. “He has a level of physicality coming from the SEC that we desperately need in that room. And obviously, his experience is the biggest thing. The guy has played a lot of football, so he has something to add to the room as far as knowledge and experience. So he’s been doing that role.”
When you have a group this deep — from six to eight, according to Sanders — anyone could be the X-factor that helps elevate the team to a new level. Starting with Sheppard, who is relatively unknown for now, is a pretty good starting point, though.
