What Deion Sanders Said About Houston Cougars, Coach Willie Fritz

BOULDER — Big 12 Conference play kicks off Friday for the Colorado Buffaloes, who will take on the Houston Cougars for the first time since 1971.

Coach Deion Sanders and the Buffs are 1-1 following a Week 2 win over the Delaware Blue Hens and are expected to start former third-string quarterback Ryan Staub against the Cougars. In only his second career start, Staub will look to find holes in a Houston defense that held Stephen F. Austin and Rice to under 230 yards of offense the past two weeks.

Ahead of Friday's 5:30 p.m. MT (ESPN) kickoff, check out what "Coach Prime," running back Simeon Price and defensive tackle Anquin Barnes Jr. have said about Houston:

Deion Sanders Praises Willie Fritz

Deion Sanders Colorado Buffaloes Players Houston Cougars Big 12 Football Anquin Barnes Simeon Price Brandon Davis-Swain Prime — Sep 6, 2025; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders (center) leads the team onto Folsom Field before the game against the Delaware Fightin Blue Hens. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

"Coach Prime" shared his respect for second-year Houston coach Willie Fritz during a press conference on Tuesday.

"Coach Fritz, remarkable career, unbelievable career," Sanders said. "What he accomplished at Tulane and so forth has been astonishing, unbelievably. So I am very impressed with what he has accomplished as a coach, as well as being national coach of the year in 2022... God bless you, coach. Love what you are doing. Love what you are doing for all coaches. Love your staff, which you have assembled, and what you are building there."

Houston went 4-8 (3-6 Big 12) in Fritz's first season last fall but appear likely to flirt with a bowl game this year.

Simeon Price On Houston

Coming off a strong Week 2 performance against the Blue Hens, Simeon Price said the Buffs must play their style of football on Friday evening. Price also gave a shout-out to Houston's Jalen Garner, a veteran linebacker with 13 tackles on the season.

"We just have to be us," Price said. "Like I said, Houston, they switch things up. They go four-down, they go three-down and do a lot of stunts up front. Thirty-six (Garner) is a pretty physical linebacker, so we have to play disciplined football. We know it's conference play. We know emotions will be high. You can't get caught up in any of that stuff."

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Anquin Barnes Jr. Talks Defensive Goals

Displeased with the Buffs' run defense against Georgia Tech and Delaware, Anquin Barnes Jr. said Colorado must contain Houston's ground game, whether that stems from quarterback Conner Weigman or running back Dean Connors.

"First and foremost, we want to stop the run," Barnes said. "We want to stop the run, we want to rush the passer, and we want to stop the quarterback from running."

Connors broke out for 132 rushing yards and two touchdowns against Rice last week, and fellow running back Stacy Sneed owns over 1,000 career ground yards,