Colorado Roster's Experience Shines Light on Transfer Portal Strategy

Throughout the 2025 season, it became clear that coach Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes needed to make adjustments on both sides of the ball with inconsistent performance on offense and defense.

As a result of needing to make changes, Sanders started with the coordinators as he brought in Brennan Marion to be the new offensive coordinator and elevated Chris Marve to take over as the defensive coordinator. With the experience that Marion and Marve have as college coaches, it seems that they have both been able to help Colorado change the approach when it comes to roster construction, especially when it comes to the transfer portal.

Throughout the offseason, it has become quite clear that the Buffaloes have a completely different emphasis when it comes to the transfer portal, which is prioritizing a blend of experience and production when it comes to adding transfers. As a result of that, it appears that Colorado has been able to build one of the more experienced teams in the country, which could help the Buffaloes to compete at a much higher level in a tough Big 12 conference.

Colorado One Of The Most Experienced Teams In The Country Coach Deion Sanders Big 12 Offensive Line Defensive Line — CU football head coach Deion Sanders, or Coach Prime, watches his team warm up before the game against CSU in the Rocky Mountain Showdown at Canvas Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, in Fort Collins, Colo. | Cris Tiller/For the Coloradoan / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Total Experience On Colorado Roster

With 2026 quickly approaching, CBS Sports writer Cody Nagel ranked the most experienced college football rosters from 1-138 by snaps and games played.

For Colorado, it is very clear what the approach was this offseason, as the Buffaloes rank No. 24 in the nation when it comes to experience, with a total of 26,384 snaps. On offense, Colorado sits at No. 25 with 13,514 snaps, and on the defensive side of the ball, the Buffaloes placed No. 27 with 12,870 snaps.

Colorado's roster combines for 871 games played, which was ranked 41st in the country, while also adding 389 starts and ranking 14th in the nation.

Colorado has revamped the roster in previous offseasons under "Coach Prime," but the Buffaloes appeared to target proven production in the portal. Doing so also gives the team one of the more experienced rosters in the country.

Key Offensive Experience

Overall, it appears that the Buffaloes did a great job of finding experienced players who could help to improve the roster, and without question, one of the positions that needed it most is the offensive line, which has been a major struggle for Colorado.

Heading into 2026, the Buffaloes have 7,111 snaps along the offensive line, which ranks 14th in the FBS. In previous seasons, Colorado has struggled to protect the quarterback, and specifically last season, as the Buffaloes allowed 38 sacks, which was 125th in the country.

To improve the offensive line, Colorado added talent across the board, with additions at tackle with Georgia transfer Bo Hughley, Rutgers transfer Taj White, Missouri transfer Jayven Richardson, and Cal transfer Leon Bell. At guard, the Buffaloes added Ohio State transfer Jayvon McFadden and San Jose State transfer Jose Soto, in addition to centers Demetrius Hunter and Sean Kinney.

Colorado also brought back tackle Larry Johnson III and guard Yahya Attia as two players who have experience and could be contributors along the offensive line as well.

With the new emphasis this offseason, it does seem that Coach Prime and the rest of the coaching staff were able to completely revamp this offensive line, which should help Colorado to be a much more productive offense and give redshirt freshman quarterback Julian Lewis a great chance to succeed in his first season as the projected starter.

Key Defensive Experience

On defense, the Buffaloes also now have a significant amount of experience in the trenches. Along the defense line, Colorado now has 3,004 snaps of experience, which is No. 6 in the country.

Upfront Colorado needed to see significant improvement after having major struggles stopping the run a season ago. During the 2025 season, the Buffaloes allowed 222.5 rush yards per game, which was 135th in the country and was something that opposing offenses were able to take advantage of.

In an effort to significantly improve the run defense on the interior, the Buffaloes added Tulane transfer Santana Hopper, New Mexico State transfer Ezra Christensen, Appalachian State transfer Dylan Manuel, Coastal Carolina transfer Tyler Moore, Maryland transfer Sedrick Smith, and Baylor transfer Samu Taumanupepe.

With the activity Colorado had this offseason, the Buffaloes not only added experience to this defensive line, but also players who have the talent to generate negative plays consistently, which could be crucial for how much Colorado’s defense can truly improve.

As the Buffaloes head into 2026, the additions made along the defensive line should help to make major improvements against the run for the defense, now led by Marve, which could help Colorado become a much tougher Big 12 opponent.

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