The University of Colorado held its annual fall sports media day on Friday, with representatives from the CU football, volleyball, cross country and soccer teams answering questions from local reporters. During his time at the podium, second-year Buffs coach Deion Sanders talked about Colorado’s new offensive and defensive lines, the maturity of cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter and revealed that his team will hold an open practice in Denver next Friday. (August 16).
Colorado is less than three weeks away from its 2024 season opener on Aug. 29 against the North Dakota State Bison. Kickoff at Folsom Field is scheduled for 6pm MT (ESPN).
Below are the most notable quotes from Coach Prime’s press conference on Friday:
Team overview
“I feel much better about the team, not only because of the young people we have accumulated in this locker room, but also because of the staff and the way they work together. The coordinators are phenomenal. The support staff is incomparable. . We all really have a cohesive bond which is truly admirable.”
About New Defensive Line Coach Damione Lewis
“He’s an incredible coach. I have a mechanism that allows me to sit in my office and watch every meeting that happens, as well as go to them periodically, and he’s a great teacher.”
In the Colorado cornerbacks room
“I’m pretty much looking at four or five guys who can hit, run and cover all day. You don’t need to blitz, you don’t need to have exotic things on defense because these guys can do that.”
About forwards Dayon Hayes and Samuel Okunlola
“I want to thank Pittsburgh coach (Pat Narduzzi) for really preparing those young guys for us. pros.”
About unknown players who stood out
“The defense is coming. These young guys, there’s probably six pass rushers there that are going to get to the quarterback. I’m talking from the outside. From the inside, these guys are going about their business. I can name them all because these guys are really going about their business. . (Anquin) Barnes, he’s coming back from injury, he’s trying to get back together. (LaVonta) These guys have really stepped up.”
About Colorado’s expected new uniforms
“Uniforms don’t win or lose games; they just improve the look… Not only the uniforms that look good, but the cleats that match the uniforms, those will work too. These kids, these young people, are going to look great. wonderful.”
At cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter
“He’s a great human being and he knows how to play. His character is second to none. That’s why I don’t mind fishing with him and he comes to Texas. We’re talking about life, we’re talking about the next step, we’re talking about land acquisition. We talk about a lot of different things.”
At wide receiver Jimmy Horn Jr.
“I thought he played phenomenally last year. He had some bad moments, but Jimmy is a phenomenal athlete.”
About scheduling an open workout
“When you practice in front of the company, no one will be embarrassed, right? When you are there (media), everyone will try hard. We’re not going to show what we’re going to do in the first game, we probably just want to change that and we also want to give opportunities to the wonderful fan base.”
This article originally appeared on Buffaloes Wire: Notable Quotes From Deion Sanders’ First Fall Camp Press Conference