Shedeur Sanders, Travis Hunter react to massive turnout for Colorado spring game

Colorado Buffaloes fans packed Folsom Stadium for the team’s spring game to get a glimpse at what they’ve been working on all spring long. It was quite the spectacle drawing attention from all over, including some former NFL stars like Terrell Davis and LenDale White. But all the extra attention shock the Buffaloes players? And were they appreciative of all the attention they received? Well, two of the biggest stars in the program, defensive back Travis Hunter and quarterback Shedeur Sanders, took turns answering those questions following the Colorado spring game.

“Naw, it didn’t surprise us,” said Hunter. “We knew they were coming out to support, and we just wanted to show everybody what we can do in the fall season.

“We appreciate it, but when we woke up, we weren’t thinking about alumni. We were thinking about what we’re gonna do today. What can we show them that they haven’t seen yet? So we were pretty much coming in locked in. We weren’t worried about alumni. Probably after the game, yeah. But during the game, we weren’t.”

It should come as no surprise that the number in attendance set a new spring game attendance record for the Buffaloes. The crowd in attendance for the game was 47,277; or 88 percent of the stadium’s maximum capacity.

That 47,222 more than doubled the previous attendance record for a spring game at Colorado, 17,800, that was set 15 years ago in 2008. And when comparing this year’s attendance numbers to last year’s, there is a stark difference between the two. Last year just some 1950 fans attended the Buffaloes’ spring showcase.

“I don’t feel like it surprised us to where it shocked us because, mentally, we were putting ourselves through that atmosphere and the game-like situations each and every day going to practice,” said Sanders. “So now, when everybody else is able to see what we do at practice, then it’s a show. But we just approach practice like every day is a game. So, mentally we were already locked in, and we knew; OK, it’s gonna be a lot of people.

“Before the game, everybody gets together. And they come, and they enjoy what’s going on. We gotta go out there and play. So, I can’t really enjoy it as much as they can. And I don’t really dap up too many people because I want to just have an extreme focus on the task at hand. So after the fact, we were able to mingle and just appreciate what was going on. But that’s the worst thing about a football player; during that time, we couldn’t really enjoy the fact that everybody came back. All the fans in the stands going crazy and stuff because we got to play each play for what it is. We’ve got to stay focused throughout the whole time.”