Colorado Buffaloes Coach Reportedly Leaves Team Before Fall Camp

The Colorado Buffaloes have undergone an unexpected coaching change as receivers coach Jason Phillips has seemingly exited the program.

Oct 19, 2024; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Colorado Buffalos wide receivers coach Jason Phillips against the Arizona Wildcats at Arizona Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

The Colorado Buffaloes have kicked off fall camp, but a coach who spent the spring with the team is no longer with the program. Although no official confirmation has been released from the team, receivers coach Jason Phillips has been removed from the staff directory and was absent in the coach introductions.

His departure from the team may be part of shuffling around the new offensive coaching staff, but Colorado has not officially confirmed any reasoning.

Jason Phillips’s exit from the Colorado Buffaloes

Oct 19, 2024; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Colorado Buffalos head coach Deion Sanders (right) with wide receivers coach Jason Phillips against the Arizona Wildcats at Arizona Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

On the first day of fall camp, he was removed from the Buffaloes’ official coaching staff directory. When looking at the list of Colorado’s entire coaching staff, Phillips’s name is no longer on the list. In addition, when checking the link to his Colorado coaching profile, one is met with a 404 error, stating that the page no longer exists.

Secondly, in the first video of fall camp from Well Off Media, every member of Colorado’s football staff introduced themselves to the team in a full-team meeting. This included training staff, assistant coaches and student assistants, so there would’ve been no reason for Phillips not to speak. However, he was absent from the room.

Rashad Davis likely to replace Jason Phillips as receivers coach

Oct 19, 2024; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Colorado Buffalos graduate assistant Rashad Davis (near) alongside wide receivers coach Jason Phillips against the Arizona Wildcats at Arizona Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

But when inside receivers coach Rashad Davis stood up in front of the room, he addressed himself simply as “receivers coach.” While his title has seen no adjustment on Colorado’s staff directory, this introduction in the team meeting would suggest that he has taken over Phillips’s role.

Though it is unlikely that Davis knew Phillips would be leaving, he has seemingly been preparing for this new role since the spring. He revealed how it had increased from seasons past in his March 24 press conference.

“Mostly, my role has always been an energetic guy,” Davis said. “I’m very passionate in what I do, very energetic, breaking down defenses of the opposing teams, things like that. Now, I’m stepping more into a [hands-on] role and developing these guys on the field, and also off the field. We want them to be good athletes, but most importantly, we want them to be good young men when they get into the real world”

Why Jason Phillips may have exited the program

Sacramento State Hornets head coach Brennan Marion listens to one of the assistant coaches yell at players on Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025, at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium in Brookings, South Dakota. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

The rumored reasoning for Phillips’s exit from the program was a clash in playstyle between him and new offensive coordinator Brennan Marion. Marion’s ‘Go-Go’ offense is demanding of its receivers when it comes to blocking, but Phillips has come under fire in the past for his unique mindset on his receivers blocking.

“Blocking to me is a ‘want to,’” said Phillips in August of 2025. “We don’t do any drills for it, to be quite honest with you. To me, that’s internal.”

While he acknowledged the flak he caught from those comments during his March 24 press conference in 2026, he hardly backed off of his stance.

“Blocking has got to be in a guy’s DNA,” Phillips said. “No matter how many drills you do, if it isn’t in his DNA, he isn’t going to want to do it.”

While it is all still speculation that this difference in coaching style was the reason for Phillips’s exit, it would make sense that Colorado would want to go in a different direction for its crucial new offensive system.

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