What Is Really Going On in the Colorado QB Room Ahead of Houston Showdown?

Uncertainty floats around who will be the starting quarterback when the Houston Cougars’ defense takes on the Colorado Buffaloes on Friday evening.

There were reports from ESPN’s Pete Thamel that there might be a change at the position after head coach Deion Sanders named senior QB Kaidon Salter the starter to begin the season against Georgia Tech.

Sources: Colorado is expected to start Ryan Staub at quarterback for the game at Houston on Friday night. He entered the Delaware game on Saturday as the third-string quarterback and shined, completing 7 of 10 passes for 157 yards and two touchdowns. pic.twitter.com/WJL3Aawd08
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) September 9, 2025

Salter did play in Week 2 against Delaware, where he went 13-of-16 for 102 yards but did not record any touchdowns. The two backup quarterbacks, sophomore Ryan Staub and freshman Julian Lewis, also got playing time, with Staub stealing the show with two touchdowns.

Andy Staples and Ari Wasserman sat down to dissect the recent chatter about what Sanders might do.

Quarterback Controversy

Latreveon McCutchin, Houston football — Houston linebacker Latreveon McCutchin (10) | Troy Taormina/Imagn Images

According to Wasserman, Sanders allegedly said he prayed on the quarterback scenario after the Georgia Tech game. Wasserman added to let the tape tell the story.

“I think it’s pretty evident from what I saw on Saturday that JuJu might not be ready to play on Saturday as much as we thought he would,” Wasserman said. “That doesn’t mean he’s done playing or won’t continue to develop in games if and when those opportunities present themselves for Colorado.”

Lewis only went 2-for-4 with eight yards in the air. What makes this conversation interesting is that at Big 12 media days, Sanders brought the freshman Lewis, who was wearing a $150,000 watch, to the podium. Everyone thought that he could be the future, but they lost track of the diverse group of players that Sanders brought in, who were fully capable of winning starting jobs.

“So everybody kind of got an equal shot against a similar opponent,” Staples said. “What Ryan Staubs did, there’s no guarantee that it translates against a Big 12 defense, but he looked awesome. Deion Sanders knows what he can do. Understands him very well.”

Wasserman later chimed in on the Buffaloes program over the last two years since Sanders was announced as head coach.

“The thing that makes it so interesting about Colorado is that Colorado is a program that is filled with characters,” Wasserman said. “I hadn’t thought at all about Ryan Staub for two years. I didn’t even consider that this was a possibility.”

Staples then compared how former Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh handled his quarterback room, with Cade McNamara getting one start, then JJ McCarthy having one start, to determine what was in the best interest of the Wolverines’ program. In this scenario, Staples pointed out that this is somewhat similar to what Sanders is doing in trying to figure out his next move.

“I think Deion Sanders knew what we were going to see,” Staples said. “I think he structured it that way on purpose. I think he did it in that order on purpose. And I think he knew what was going to happen because he had seen enough of it at practice to know what was going to happen.”

Regardless of what any national outlet says about what they believe will happen on Friday evening, Sanders knows what cards he holds in his hand and how he wants to play them.

The fun part is getting to see if Deion elects to roll the dice earlier than anticipated.

What the media does know is that Willie Fritz and Co. will continue starting Weigman and continue to contend with a Big 12 defense that has momentum on their side without rumors swirling.