Kansas State Pushing For Colorado Recruiting Target Before Boulder Visit

The Colorado Buffaloes and Kansas State Wildcats are both in the running for class of 2027 recruit, defensive lineman Joshua Shaw.

Dec 21, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Legendary football and baseball player and father of Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders, Deion Sanders on the sidelines prior to a game against the Buffalo Bills at Huntington Bank Field. Credit: Scott Galvin-Imagn Images | Scott Galvin-Imagn Images

The Colorado Buffaloes are in pursuit of class of 2027 recruit, defensive lineman Joshua Shaw. Shaw recently visited with the Kansas State Wildcats, receiving an offer in the process. Next up on this schedule is a visit to Boulder. 

Joshua Shaw Player Profile 

Nov 1, 2025; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders before the game against the Arizona Wildcats at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Joshua Shaw is a 6-3, 300 pound defensive lineman out of Elmhurst, Illinois. The Buffaloes offered Shaw back in February of 2026. They now have some inner-conference competition for Shaw with Kansas State. The Wildcats finished the 2025 season with a record of 6-6 and 5-4 Big 12 conference play. This had them end in a four-way tie for seventh place in the conference with the Iowa State Cyclones, TCU Horned Frogs, and Cincinnati Bearcats.

Shaw talked to Allen Trieu of Rivals about his visit to Kansas State.

"I really like their staff. They're super welcoming and have great chemistry. Their coaching styles are really dynamic, which is something I appreciate," Shaw said. "The campus has a cool vibe...I love that their program is forward thinking...Plus it honestly feels like one big family in their facilities."

Colorado will have to put on display the best things about Boulder and their program if they want to sway over Shaw.

Colorado's Recent Recruiting

Nov 29, 2025; Manhattan, Kansas, USA; Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders looks on during the second quarter against the Kansas State Wildcats at Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Sewell-Imagn Images | Scott Sewell-Imagn Images

Since Deion Sanders took over as Colorado coach in 2023, the Buffaloes have primarily relied on the transfer portal to build their roster. As they enter 2026, Coloraod has 43 incoming transfers, which is among the most in the entire country. This is very reflective in the 2026 recruiting class rankings.

Per On3 rankings, the Buffs incoming 2026 high school recruiting class in ranked No. 67 in the country. This is among the worst out of all power four conference teams. The only Big 12 team ranked lower are the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Oklahoma State is coming off a winless season in conference play and underwent a head coaching change in the offseason. They are one of the few teams with more incoming transfers than Colorado.

Colorado's 2026 recruiting class only had 18 commits, with zero five-stars, two four-stars, and 16 three-stars. "Coach Prime's" squad will not be reliant on freshmen in 2026. There's good and bad with this.

Nov 22, 2025; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders on the sidelines in the first quarter against the Arizona State Sun Devils at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The good is that it's hard to rely on players that have not yet stepped on a college football field. The flip side is there aren't many freshmen on the team to develop within the program.

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook for the latest news.