What Deion Sanders, Colorado Buffaloes Players Are Saying About Dangerous Utah Utes

BOULDER — On Saturday, the Colorado Buffaloes will face a vastly improved Utah Utes team compared to the one they rolled through in Boulder last season.

With an improved run game and a solidified starting quarterback in Devon Dampier, who's currently questionable for this weekend's matchup in Salt Lake City, the 5-2 Utes have already matched their win total from last year. Still, the Buffs hold momentum after beating Iowa State last time out and should challenge longtime coach Kyle Whittingham's Utes on both sides of the ball.

Ahead of this weekend's matchup, Colorado coach Deion Sanders, defensive end London Merritt, wide receiver Quentin Gibson and athlete Kam Mikell spoke with the media on a variety of topics:

Deion Sanders on Kyle Whittingham

What Deion Sanders Colorado Buffaloes Players Saying Improved Utah Utes Quentin Gibson Kam Mikell London Merritt Big 12 Prime — Nov 25, 2023; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion 'Coach Prime' Sanders congratulates Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham after the Utah Utes victory over the Colorado Buffaloes at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Creveling-Imagn Images | Christopher Creveling-Imagn Images

"Coach Whittingham, unbelievable," Sanders said. "He's a pillar of consistency, one of my heroes in this coaching realm. He's been doing it for quite some time. I wish I could have the tenure here at CU that he's had in Utah. His team resembles who he is as a man, how he played the game — physical, tough, consistent. "

Deion Sanders' Thoughts on Utah

"I love what they're doing," Sanders said. "I love the quarterback physicality. I like the way the corners play. He's (Whittingham) got some DBs that make plays and a linebacker that's a darn dawg. They got something special. I love what I see on film from them, but I love our team as well."

Kam Mikell Seeing Increased Belief In Buffs

Versatile offensive weapon Kam Mikell shared that Colorado's key win over Iowa State last week has led to an improved mindset.

"Ever since we got that win (over Iowa State), especially during the game, you can just tell with everybody's momentum and energy," Gibson said. "You can tell it's a shift. I feel like after we started actually stopping the big downs on fourth down and stuff, everybody actually started believing."

Quentin Gibson on Lessons Learned This Season

True freshman Quentin Gibson has emerged as a key playmaker this season with the help of some patience.

"Patience," Gibson said of the biggest lesson he has learned this fall. "Last year, I played a lot in high school, so coming here and not really being able to play off the rip, I tried to be real patient."

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London Merritt Talks Colorado's Defensive Approach

Another true freshman, defensive end London Merritt believes the Buffs will have their hands full in attempting to slow Utah's versatile ground game.

"A lot of run scheme. quarterback run, power, a lot of gap scheme with pullers," Merritt said. "We're just gonna do our thing, stop the run, play with heavy hands, hit the pullers, stay home, don't let the quarterback outside and then level the rush. We're gonna be straight."

Kickoff between the Buffs and Utes is set for 8:15 p.m. MT (ESPN) on Saturday.