CFB insider sheds light on Kaidon Salter's chance at starting for Coach Prime's Colorado in 2025

Quarterback Kaidon Salter will be involved in one of the most intriguing QB1 battles to replace the departing Shedeur Sanders for the Colorado Buffaloes. The battle to be Coach Prime's QB1 will boil down to either Salter or five-star prospect Julian Lewis, who flipped his commitment from the USC Trojans to the Buffaloes in December and even trained with the team before the Alamo Bowl.

During Thursday's segment of "Always College Football," ESPN analyst Greg McElroy weighed in on the debate between Salter and Lewis for Colorado's QB1 jersey.

"There should be a pretty interesting quarterback competition to be had between one of those four-star players in JuJu Lewis and Kaidon Salter who comes over after starting 35 games for the Liberty Flames," McElroy said (27:40).

"Now, Salter, I think he's probably gonna be the guy. He's got a lot of mobility. He's been in the fire, he's played a lot of football at college level so I don't think you go out and get a three-year starter if you don't expect him to be the guy.

"He might serve as the bridge guy to Julian Lewis who might ultimately take over as a sophomore or as a redshirt freshman in 2026. But that competition will be something that we watch very closely throughout the spring, summer and throughout fall camp."

Analyst praises Kaidon Salter's dual-threat ability

One of the greatest criticisms aimed at Coach Prime's Colorado teams has been their inability to run the ball. Last season, the Buffaloes averaged just 65.2 rushing yards per game, which ranked them No. 272 in the country. In contrast, they ranked No. 10 in the country in passing yards (318 yards per game).

During the same segment, Greg McElroy tabbed Kaidon Salter to give the Buffs a new dual-threat ability that they have been lacking under the NFL-bound Shedeur Sanders.

"Salter, 35 career games, threw for almost 6,000 yards, threw for almost 60 touchdowns, but what makes him most intriguing is that in those 35 games, he rushed for over 2,000 career yards," McElroy said (28:10).

"So, he's very dynamic with the ball in his hands and he'll be the guy that will probably do a lot with his legs because if you look at this team last year, they're one of the worst in the country at running the football."

Last season, Salter finished the season with 1,886 passing yards resulting in 15 touchdowns and six interceptions while adding 587 rushing yards on 114 carries resulting in seven touchdowns.

In contrast, Shedeur Sanders finished the season with 4,134 passing yards resulting in 37 touchdowns and 10 interceptions while rushing for -50 yards on 100 carries resulting in four touchdowns.

Clearly, Salter and Sanders are different types of quarterbacks with the former bringing a dual-threat ability that the Buffs have lacked in the past few years.