Colorado Bowl game projection: Will Deion Sanders' team beat their 4-8 record in 2024?

The Colorado Buffaloes finished with a 4-8 overall record last season despite high expectations from head coach Deion Sanders.

Coach Prime returns for his second season with Colorado in 2024, with pressure to see a tangible improvement over last season.

The returning players and improvements made in key areas should be enough to improve their record from last season. Those improvements give Colorado a good chance to qualify for a bowl game.

Last season saw a number of teams that finished with a record of or around .500 qualifying for a bowl game. Even a slight upgrade to push the Buff's record around 6-6 could be enough to earn them a spot in a bowl game in 2024.

On3 Sports' Andy Staples spoke on the improvements made by the Buffaloes this offseason and what he expects from the team ahead of the upcoming season.

"...The personnel on the offensive line is better, at least based on most of those players' performances on their teams last season. Travis Hunter probably will be the best player on the field in every game," Staples said.

"Shedeur Sanders should be one of the best QBs in the Big 12. A two- or three-win improvement is entirely realistic, and going from 1-11 in 2022 to 6-6 or 7-5 in 2024 would be a perfectly acceptable level of improvement given the circumstances Sanders inherited."

Head coach Deion Sanders won't return alone for his second season with the Buffaloes, he will have starting quarterback Shedeur Sanders with him.

Dynamic playmaker Travis Hunter will also be back in Boulder for the 2024 season, expected to once again split time at wide receiver and cornerback.

Hunter was among the most electric players in the country last season, recording 721 receiving yards and five touchdowns in nine games. He was also a force on the defensive side of the football, finishing with 30 total tackles, five pass breakups and three interceptions.

Shedeur Sanders is expected to be one of the top quarterbacks in college football this season after throwing for 3,230 yards and 27 touchdowns and just three interceptions last season. However, the offensive line struggled to protect their star quarterback, as he was sacked a total of 52 times.

The offensive line struggles in 2023 were addressed by bringing in Tyler Johnson, Justin Mayers and Payton Kirkland from the transfer portal. They also landed a top-ranked OT recruit in the class of 2024, Jordan Seaton, who could be one of the best young tackles in the country.

The defense, which ranked 124th in the nation, giving up 34.8 points per game to opponents, also received some major upgrades. BJ Green II, Dayon Hayes and Quency Wiggins, all will be in the defensive line after joining Colorado from the transfer portal.

Although Colorado managed to bring in a number of talented players from the transfer portal, it didn't come without a few key departures from the program.

CB Cormani McClain, C Van Wells, and the team's leading rusher from last season, RB Dylan Edwards, all left the Buffaloes via the transfer portal. They will all be playing for new teams in 2024.

Colorado will also be facing a new challenge by moving from the Pac-12 to the Big 12 this season. Their schedule will include teams that could offer the Buffaloes a challenge in 2024, such as Kansas State, Arizona, Utah, Kansas and Oklahoma State.

However, joining the Big 12 in 2024 may be a blessing in disguise for a Colorado team that managed just one conference win last season. The Pac-12 was a challenging conference in 2023, and the Big 12 conference schedule should give Colorado a better chance to string together more wins.

Colorado Bowl game projection in 2024

NCAA Football: Arizona at Colorado [IMAGN]

If the Buffaloes do finish the season with a record close to 6-6, this could be enough to land them a spot in a bowl game in 2024. If they fail to finish over .500, it's likely they could end up in the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl. This would feature teams from the American Conference, ACC or Big 12.

The First Responder Bowl is currently scheduled to take place on January 3, 2025, at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas, TX.

Should Colorado manage a few upsets this season and finish at 7-5 or better, they could carve out a spot in the TaxAct Texas Bowl, AutoZone Liberty Bowl, or Guaranteed Rate Bowl.

The Guaranteed Rate Bowl is scheduled for December 26, 2024, with the Liberty Bowl scheduled for the next day, December 27, 2024.

Finally, the Texas Bowl is scheduled for December 31, 2024, and would match them up against a school from the SEC.

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Do you think Colorado will make a bowl game appearance during the 2024 season? Let us know your predictions in the comment section.