Colorado backup QB 2024: Who will be Shedeur Sanders' backup in Week 1?

The Colorado Buffaloes will open its 2024 college football season at home on Thursday, August 29 against the North Dakota State Bison. The Buffaloes have joined the Big 12 and are set for their second season with Deion Sanders as their coach.

Shedeur Sanders will be the team's starting quarterback. Sanders is one of the top quarterbacks in college football and is projected to be one of the top picks in the 2025 NFL draft, but who will be his backup in 2024?

Colorado will have Ryan Staub as the Buffaloes' backup quarterback this season. Staub is entering his second year at Colorado, as last season he went 23-for-40 for 254 yards and a touchdown.

Staub redshirted last season, so he enters 2024 as a freshman, but has won the backup job and got plenty of praise from Deion Sanders. He also believes he can fill in for Shedeur should anything happen.

“I think in today’s day and age, there’s a lot of quick, impulsive sort of things,” Staub told BuffZone at CU’s fall sports media day on Friday, via FanSided. “I think a lot of good things happen from time and work and putting your head down and working, and I’m not afraid to compete a little bit more and wait out another year.

"There’s no rush. This is a long journey and I just want to set myself up for the best future for myself, as well, so I think it was the best decision.”

Staub was a three-star recruit in the class of 2023 and had offers from Colorado, Arizona, SMU, Nevada, USF, and Fresno State.

Colorado's quarterback depth chart

The Colorado Buffaloes have Shedeur Sanders as the starting quarterback and Ryan Staub as the backup.

However, the Buffaloes do have two other quarterbacks on the roster, Destin Wade and Walter Taylor III.

Wade transferred from Kentucky to Colorado this offseason. He was a three-star recruit coming out of high school and as a transfer.

Walter Taylor III, meanwhile, transferred from Vanderbilt in the offseason and, like Wade, was a three-star recruit out of high school and in the transfer portal.