Deion Sanders delivers firm list of expectations to Colorado players

Colorado‘s season was summed up in one game during its loss to Stanford two weeks ago.

Taking a massive lead into halftime, the Buffaloes completely collapsed in the second half before eventually succumbing to the Cardinal in double overtime. Beginning the season 3-0, Colorado has won one of its last four games and is looking to finish middle-of-the-pack in the Pac-12 Conference at best before 2023 is over.

With three ranked opponents on the Buffs’ schedule over the next five weeks, head coach Deion Sanders revealed the very blunt message he sent to his team during the bye week in the hopes of turning the final stretch of the season around.

“We’ve got to be disciplined in all phases of the game, we’ve got be physical, we’ve got to hold one another accountable,” Sanders said during the Colorado Football Coaches Show. “We won’t tolerate pre- and post-snap penalties, we won’t have any substitutional penalties. We will win our one-on-one battles consistently, we will exceed expectations individually, as well as collectively. We will practice with game-like focus and intensity.

“I will be a team player and do what’s best for the team all week. I will study and prepare for this game like it can change my life for me and my family. I will be coachable and do as I’m instructed, and do it with passion. My attitude and effort will make the person I respect the most, proud. I will be ready for my opportunity and it will present itself. We will win this game because of what I contributed this whole week. When I look my position coach in the eyes at the end of practice and after the game, will he say, ‘Well done?’ Those are just some notes I exchanged with the team and I want them to really embody that and think about those type of things.”

It is a pretty straight-forward message from Coach Prime toward his team — he wants their best effort. This roster was essentially hand-picked by Sanders himself, and they’ve let him down to this point in the season.

Now rested after their bye week, all of that can get turned around beginning this weekend on the road at No. 23 UCLA. The opening kickoff for the Pac-12 Conference battle is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET live on ABC. Colorado is a 16.5-point underdog against the Bruins, per Vegas Insider.