Deion Sanders 'Seemed Like He Didn't Really Care About Us,' Ex-Colorado Player Says

Deion Sanders is taking a somewhat drastic approach to rebuilding the Colorado football program, and the new head coach apparently wasn't too concerned about a number of players who are on the way out.

"I'm not sure he knew the names of half the kids he got rid of," offensive lineman Travis Gray, who is leaving, said, per David Ubben of The Athletic. "He was worried about who he brought in. If you were on the 1-11 team, it seemed like he didn't really care about us at all. He already said he was going to get rid of 25-30 of us, and that's exactly what he did."

Ubben noted 23 Colorado players entered the transfer portal or said they would do so on Monday and Tuesday, with players saying most of them did so because they were instructed to as the roster turns over.

Tight end Zach Courtney also hit the transfer portal and said, "none of the new coaches would talk to the old players and treat us the same as the people they brought in. The new guys wouldn't be picked on as much in film. Coaches would tell them to just do better, but if it was an old player, they'd keep going off on what you did wrong and keep yelling about it."

Jim Weber provided additional context when it came to Courtney:

"Colorado is happy to provide all game film and any practice film prior to spring 2023 to any student-athlete and institution upon request," the school said in a statement, per ESPN's Heather Dinich.

The recent exodus is nothing new considering 46 players in all have turned to the portal since Sanders took over on Dec. 2.

It was also all according to plan.

"I'm bringing my luggage with me, and it's Louis [Vuitton]," Sanders said during his initial team meeting. "I want y'all to get ready to go ahead and jump in that portal. … The more you jump in, the more room you make."

Gray explained that offensive line coach Bill O'Boyle told him Sanders was going to cut him. It hit him particularly hard since his father, Lamarr Gray, was a member of Colorado's 1990 national championship team.

Elsewhere, safety Jeremy Mack Jr., who was a part of the first-team defense in the spring, said Sanders told him "we have plans to go another way" during his first meeting with the coach, per Ubben.

Some roster turnover was inevitable.

After all, the Buffaloes were an ugly 1-11 last season and haven't won more than five games since the 2016 season. They have fallen to the bottom of the Pac-12, which is a primary reason Sanders was brought in to turn things around.

The Pro Football Hall of Famer went 27-6 in three seasons as the head coach of Jackson State and brought eight players from his old school, including his son Shedeur and highly regarded recruit Travis Hunter, with him to Colorado.

His son is set to be the starting quarterback in the fall.

Colorado has a difficult 2023 schedule with matchups against TCU, Nebraska, Oregon, USC, UCLA and Utah. It will likely take some time before it is competing for conference crowns, but Sanders' approach is accelerating the rebuild.