Joel Klatt Sees Encouraging Progress for Colorado Buffaloes Ahead of 2025 Season

Colorado Buffaloes former quarterback Joel Klatt, now a college football analyst and commentator for Fox Sports, led Colorado to consecutive bowl appearances in the early 2000s, and he has since become one of the most recognizable voices in college football.

One of Buff's most successful quarterbacks of the 21st century, Klatt helped lead Colorado to the Houston Bowl in 2004 and the Champs Sports Bowl in 2005, marking CU’s last run of postseason consistency.

Oct 2, 2004; Columbia, MO, USA; Quarterback Joel Klatt #14 of the University of Colorado Buffalos passes against the University of Missouri Tigers at Memorial Stadium in Columbia, Mo. Klatt was 28 of 18 for 171 yards. The Tigers beat the Buffalos 17-9. Mandatory Credit: Photo by Dilip Vishwanat-Imagn Images (©) Copyright 2004 by Dilip Vishwanat | Dilip Vishwanat-Imagn Images

At Big 12 Media Day in Frisco, Texas, Klatt spoke with longtime Colorado Buffaloes beat writer Brian Howell, where the two discussed the Buffs’ outlook heading into coach Deion Sanders’ third season in Boulder.

"Talent acquisition is the lifeblood of the program, and they’ve done a nice job acquiring talent," Klatt told Howell.

"I think they should be good at the quarterback position. What I think is more important... is that the line of scrimmage is getting better and better and better and deeper."

Video: Always great to catch up with ⁦@joelklatt⁩. At Big 12 media days I talked with the Forever Buff about college football and the 2025 Colorado Buffs #cubuffs https://t.co/saRVe42pKk
— Brian Howell (@BrianHowell33) July 11, 2025

For Klatt, Colorado’s growth in the trenches is what separates this team from recent Buffs squads.

In "Coach Prime's" first two seasons at the helm, CU’s lack of physicality and depth up front was a glaring weakness.

Over that period, former Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders was among the most-sacked quarterbacks in college football, going down over 90 times in only 22 games, reflecting an area of focus that needed to be addressed.

Sep 23, 2023; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Oregon Ducks defensive end Jordan Burch (1) sacks Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders (2) during the first half at Autzen Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-Imagn Images | Soobum Im-Imagn Images

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However, this year’s Colorado offensive line already looks to be notably improved.

Freshman All-American Jordan Seaton returns with a stronger, leaner frame entering his sophomore year. Seaton will be joined by several key transfer additions, including Xavier Hill, a 2024 All-AAC guard from Memphis.

Sky is the limit for Jordan Seaton🚀 pic.twitter.com/zAZF0rc5uS
— PFF College (@PFF_College) May 21, 2025

Zy Crisler, who started 30 games at Illinois. Zarian McGill from Louisiana Tech, who has 27 career starts. Andre Roye Jr. from Maryland, and three SEC transfers in Aki Ogunbiyi from Texas A&M, Larry Johnson III from Tennessee, and Mana Taimani from Ole Miss.

"Two years ago, they had some marquee talent on the outside, but the line of scrimmage was really poor, and they tried to play around it, and it was tough," Klatt continued. "They got a little bit better last year, and they should be a little bit better on the line of scrimmage this year. And I think that alone should help them overcome some of those losses on the outside."

Klatt acknowledged that replacing the production of a legendary quarterback like Shedeur Sanders won’t happen overnight.

Still, he sees promise in Colorado’s retooled quarterback room, which now features true freshman Julian "JuJu" Lewis and Liberty senior transfer Kaidon Salter—a dual-threat signal-caller who earned Conference USA MVP honors in 2023 leading Liberty to a 13-0 regular season.

Dec 1, 2023; Lynchburg, VA, USA; Liberty Flames quarterback Kaidon Salter (7) holds up the Conference USA MVP trophy after the game against the New Mexico State Aggies at Williams Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Bishop-Imagn Images | Brian Bishop-Imagn Images

"Can you replace Shedeur right away? No," Klatt said. "Even with JuJu or Kaidon, I think that’s going to be difficult to do, although those two players are quality players."

Then there’s Travis Hunter, the two-way star who dazzled college football for two seasons in Boulder before capping his final season with the Heisman Trophy Award.

"The harder one is Travis. Travis was the unicorn of all unicorns. He was so good. He was one of the best players I’ve ever seen play college football. That’s going to be very difficult to overcome because it's going to have to be multiple players that overcome that."

Sep 21, 2024; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes wide receiver Travis Hunter (12) walks off the field before the game against the Baylor Bears at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

Despite the challenge of replacing a generational talent like Hunter, Klatt believes the 2025 Buffaloes are positioned to be a more complete team overall.

Colorado finished 9–4 last season and tied for first in the Big 12 at 7–2.

This year, the Buffs will aim to accomplish something it hasn’t done since Klatt’s days under center by making back-to-back bowl appearances for the first time in nearly two decades.

For Buffaloes fans, the goal goes beyond simply earning another bowl bid.

It’s also about achieving sustainable success under "Coach Prime."