Head coach Deion Sanders has been in Colorado long enough now that he’s familiar with the weather in the Centennial State.
“It’s beautiful here, especially yesterday it was,” he said to laughs after he took his team through a soggy Black & Gold game at Folsom Field on Saturday. “Knowing this weather, it’s gonna be beautiful tomorrow.”
Coach Prime certainly hasn’t caught a break with the weather for his first two spring games as the head coach of the Buffaloes. Prior to last year’s snowy Black & Gold game, the Buffs hadn’t seen precipitation at a spring game since 2012 and now it’s happened two years in a row.
Despite the fact that Saturday didn’t feature beautiful weather, Coach Prime’s Buffs put forth their best efforts in wrapping up their final day of spring drills.
“We are built to handle adversity,” he said. “We give them messages every day we practice, every day in facility. We’re trying to raise men that can handle adversity, that can handle the unexpected. And we already know what we had (on the field).”
Officially, 28,424 tickets were sold for the Black & Gold game, although CU officials estimated about half of those tickets went unused as many chose not to sit through the rain and 38-degree temperature.
Still, it was the second-highest number of tickets distributed for a CU spring game in program history, only behind last year’s 47,277 for Coach Prime’s debut.
The Buffs unofficially ran 53 plays during roughly an hour of scrimmage time and those who did brave the elements saw star quarterback Shedeur Sanders put on a show.
Shedeur played only three series, but completed 10-of-14 passes for 116 yards and a touchdown. He connected with transfer LaJohntay Wester for a 19-yard touchdown to conclude the first series of the day.
“Yeah, the weather wasn’t the best for what I like to do: throw the ball,” he said. “So it was definitely tough out there, but we fought through it.”
Wester caught three passes for 66 yards and a touchdown, receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter caught four passes for 27 yards, and Omarion Miller caught two passes for 13 yards.
Most importantly, Shedeur had time to operate. The most-sacked quarterback in the country last year, he was tagged with just one on Saturday and never did take off and run with the ball.
“I feel like I run when I need to, when I have to,” he said. “Of course it’s exciting and very energetic but if I’m able to sit in there how I was today and throw it, there’s no need for me to use my legs much.”
As expected, the Buffs didn’t show much of their new-look offense under coordinator Pat Shurmur. And they were shorthanded in some spots, which left them improvising a bit.
At running back, in fact, they were so short-handed that cornerback Isaiah Hardge was the starter in the backfield. CU came into the spring with six running backs, but three have left as transfers in the past two weeks, while freshmen Micah Welch and junior Charlie Offerdahl sat out with injuries.
Hardge responded with 66 yards on eight carries, including a 41-yard touchdown. Walk-on Christian Sarem and tight end Morgan Pearson were the only other backs to carry the ball.
“Our lack of depth at running back, we had a couple guys step up like Isaiah Hardge and get in there off of two days of practice and get in there and do his thing,” Shedeur said.
A few others also played well, including linebacker Jeremiah Brown, defensive lineman Taurean Carter and cornerback Preston Hodge.
“Overall it was a good performance,” Shedeur said. “I feel like we got some things we got to clean up but I feel like we’re in a way better place mentally, physically than last year.”
Coach Prime also believes the Buffs are in a better spot as they conclude spring because the talent is better than it was a year ago at this time.
“The progress that we’ve made, it’s another caliber of player that’s playing, a player that truly expects to go to the next level, meaning the NFL,” he said. “These young men want to practice, they want to have each other’s back. They want the physicality, they want all the smoke, so to speak. I love what we’re building in this locker room and if you’re not a part of that thought process or that desire, you don’t fit.”
