Week 1 has arrived for the Colorado Buffaloes as they host North Dakota State at Folsom Field on Thursday night. CU returns stars and Heisman hopefuls Travis Hunter and Shedeur Sanders for what is expected to be their respective final collegiate seasons.
Colorado has a new offensive line that is headlined by freshman five-star and former IMG academy product Jordan Seaton. The blue-chip will have the task of protecting Sanders' blindside. Tyler Brown will make his long-awaited debut for the Buffs. The Jackson State transfer was held out after not being granted an NCAA waiver last year. “The Roc” as Coach Prime likes to call him is ready to make an impact at left guard for the Buffs. The other two new faces on the line will be Justin Mayers, the transfer from UTEP, and former Indiana Hoosier standout Kahlil Benson. The lone returner is sophom*ore center Hank Zilinskas who played in 11 games last season making two starts.
Pat Shurmur took over as offensive coordinator at the end of last season and will bring his pro-style offense to the Buffs for this campaign, which could mean big things for Hunter and senior Jimmy Horn Jr. The Florida and Georgia receivers were a big part of Sanders' success last year. Horn led the Buffs with six touchdowns and recorded 58 receptions on the season. Hunter became just the second player in CU history to earn first-team All-American and Academic All-American honors as he put up a 4.0 grade point average while winning the Paul Hornung Award as the nation's most versatile player. It is a new stable of running backs, but look for Ohio State transfer Dallan Hayden to be a player that will make his name known in the Big 12. One-time walk-on Charlie Offerdahl returns for his junior year with CU. The duo will be featured in more of a balanced attack compared to last year.
Colorado's defense is led by Hunter as a Heisman Trophy hopeful. Opposing teams will be looking to avoid throwing at the shutdown cornerback, who will be in the slot this year. Cam’Ron Silmon-Craig also returns at strong safety for the Buffs with Shilo Sanders going back to be a center fielder at free safety. The key to the Buffs defense this year will be getting pressure on the quarterback. It's something CU assistant coach Warren Sapp has preached during the offseason. Buffs transfers B.J. Green (Arizona State) and Dayon Hayes (Pittsburgh) will be two names for fans to watch out for. First-year defensive coordinator Robert Livingston will be deploying a 4-2-5 defense in a new look for CU this year.
North Dakota State comes in as the second-ranked team in FCS to start the season. Expect the Bison to be a problem for the Buffs as they can run the ball downhill. They averaged 237.5 yards per game on the ground last year, which was fourth best in FCS. Cam Miller will lead the charge for the Bison at quarterback. He was second on the team with 629 yards rushing and also threw for 19 touchdowns last year. However, Barika Kpeenu will see his fair share of carries for the run-heavy NDST squad.
Colorado vs. North Dakota State: The history of the Buffaloes and Bison
As for the Bison defense, they allowed 19.93 points a game. FCS All-American Cole Wisniewski was expected to be one of the players to watch, but will reportedly miss a significant amount of time after a foot injury. He led the Bison with eight interceptions last season and is a significant loss going into this first-ever matchup. Dylan Hendricks, who was second on the team last year with 6.5 sacks, returns as the Buffs new look O-line will have their hands full with him.
The intensity grows for Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes ahead of North Dakota State
North Dakota is a team that Colorado cannot afford to sleep on. The Bison have a deep history of upsetting Division I teams like Colorado State, Minnesota, and Iowa State to name a few. They only have one FBS loss in seven tries since 2010. The Buffs are opening the season with a non division one opponent (D-1 AA/FCS) for only the third time since the designation in 1978 holding a 1-1 record with a loss against Montana State in 2006 and a win against Northern Colorado in 2015. Needless to say, Colorado dealt many surprises early last season and then the wheels fell off in conference play. It’s a new chapter as the Buffs look for their first win in 2024.
