The Colorado Buffaloes have had a mass exodus via the transfer portal this offseason, losing 18 players and counting to the portal. And one former Colorado player recently offered some insight into head coach Deion Sanders as to why this could be the case.
Former Colorado safety Xavier Smith was one of the few players on the Colorado roster before Sanders’ arrived that tried to stick it out at the program. But things took a bit of a turn when he attempted to do so.
According to Smith, Sanders met with him and told him that he thought he should enter the transfer portal, which was understandably extremely hard for him.
“He said he felt like I should hit the portal,” Smith told The Athletic. “He didn’t want me to waste a year thinking I could earn a spot. I was actually getting mad, like tears coming to my eyes. Because, bro, you never even tried to get to know me.”
Smith decided to try and stick it out and earn playing time under Sanders but ultimately ended up transferring to Austin Peay after he was reportedly repeatedly ignored by Sanders and the rest of the coaching staff.
“He was destroying guys’ confidence and belief in themselves,” Smith said. “The way he did it, it could’ve been done with a little more compassion.”
If Sanders is perhaps making other players on his roster feel this way, then it makes total sense as to why so many other players have decided to leave for other opportunities this offseason.
Only time will tell whether Colorado’s roster is able to withstand all these changes next season and potentially improve. But Smith’s statement here about Sanders certainly doesn’t paint him or the Colorado program as a whole in a positive light.
