Deion Sanders opens new season at Colorado after another roster flip

BOULDER, Colo. – Deion Sanders is once again making bold moves with the Colorado Buffaloes.

In his first season as Colorado’s head football coach, Sanders shook up the program by bringing in 68 new scholarship players, 47 of whom were transfers from other four-year colleges. This year, he’s flipped the roster again, adding 50 new scholarship players, including 39 transfers.

But will Sanders’ strategy pay off this time, after last season’s 4-8 finish?

As Colorado gears up to open the season at home against North Dakota State on Thursday (8 p.m. ET, ESPN), here are three reasons the Buffaloes might improve under Sanders’ leadership – and three potential challenges they could face.

Reasons for Success

1. Improved Defense
Sanders has been praising his defense, especially its depth. Among the 39 new scholarship transfers, 14 are defensive linemen or linebackers, which should help a defense that ranked near the bottom nationally last year, allowing 453.3 yards per game.

“We’re looking at seven, maybe eight guys on defense who could be pros by the end of the season,” Sanders said recently, highlighting feedback from NFL scouts.

The defense has added key players like Arizona State transfer BJ Green and Pittsburgh transfer Dayon Hayes, who will contribute to a more aggressive scheme under new defensive coordinator Robert Livingston, formerly with the Cincinnati Bengals.

“We’ve got every kind of pass rusher here,” Hayes said. “It’s going to be tough for offenses to handle.”

2. Star Power
Only two Colorado players have replica jerseys available at the campus bookstore – quarterback Shedeur Sanders and cornerback-receiver Travis Hunter. Both are potential first-round NFL draft picks and have secured major endorsement deals, including a new Nike deal for Shedeur, who set a school record with 3,230 passing yards last year.

This will also be the last college season Deion