Deion Sanders comments on flipping the entire Colorado Roster: "They didn’t love football"

Following his appointment in December 2022, Colorado football head coach Deion Sanders set his sights on rebuilding the team roster. The Buffaloes had a woeful 2022 campaign which ended with a 1-11 record. Naturally, it resulted in the firing of Karl Dorrell, the Buff's head coach at the time.

After the team's spring game in April, a massive overhaul of the roster has been implemented by Deion Sanders. Consequently, the majority of the players from the squad that played last season have been cut from the team, and 57 transfers have arrived. Just 10 of the players on scholarship from the roster last season are still on the roster as the new season approaches.

The 56-year-old's style has drawn strong criticism from other coaches, including Oklahoma's Brent Venables and Ptt's Pat Narduzzi. However, Deion Sanders doesn't appear fazed, and he defended his style to the media during his presser on Friday. He said:

“I know it's a huge overhaul, but it had to be done. It was tremendously tough, because you had some young men that just didn't want to play the game. They didn't love football. It's hard for me to be effective when you don't love it. It's tremendously tough when you're looking at a body of just dead eyes. That's tough on any coach, not just me. I'm sure a multitude of coaches have experienced that until they could clean the house and get the roster they want.”

As for the present, Sanders admits he's happy with what he sees in his team every morning. He's very satisfied with what he's been able to achieve with the overhaul so far.

How is Deion Sanders' Colorado team looking ahead of the season?

According to 247Sports ranking, the transfer portal class Sanders brought to Colorado ranks No. 1 this offseason. Among Sanders' acquisitions from the transfer portal is former top prospect Travis Hunter. Sanders had previously recruited him for Jackson State, where he became the highest-ranked prospect to ever commit to the school with a five-star rating.

However, there are still plenty of people who doubt what Deion Sanders has accomplished at Colorado. They are going into their first game of the 2023 season as the overwhelming underdog. The program is ranked by the media as the 11th most likely team to win the Pac-12 Conference championship.

The Buffaloes are set to play their last season in the Pac-12 before they return to competing in the Big 12 in 2024. They will be joined in the Big 12 by Arizona, Arizona State, and Utah. Note that the Buffaloes have not had a winning season since 2016, when they raked in 10 wins and played for the Pac-12 championship title.