Former Florida A&M, LSU OL Kardell Thomas joins Colorado roster

In a late addition ahead of the 2024 season, former Florida A&M and LSU offensive lineman Kardell Thomas has joined the Colorado roster. The news was initially reported by Buffzone’s Brian Howell.

The former four-star recruit entered the portal in April and announced his commitment to Central Missouri in July but did not enroll. A 6-foot-3, 310-pound guard played in four games for LSU during the 2022 season, including the Citrus Bowl win over Purdue.

In 2021, Kardell Thomas played in a career-high six games with two starts. Those starts came against Louisiana-Monroe and Texas A&M. The former top-100 recruit has one year of eligibility remaining. Thomas was on the roster as the Tigers won a national championship during the 2019 season.

Adding Thomas gives Colorado another depth option on the offensive line. Colorado picked up four linemen in OL Ethan Boyd (Michigan State), OL Payton Kirkland (Texas), OL Zechariah Owens (Clemson), OL Wyatt Hummel (Villanova) this spring.

Boyd and Hummel are the most proven of the bunch. A 6-foot-7, 325-pound tackle with two seasons of eligibility remaining, Boyd played in 12 games in 2023 with 313 snaps, allowing two sacks, nine hurries and 13 quarterback pressures. Hummel is a grad transfer who played 402 Snaps for Villanova in 2023 and allowed just three total pressures.

In total, Colorado has now added 10 transfers on the offensive line this offseason. Five were full-time starters at the FBS level last year.

Shedeur Sanders finished his first season at Colorado with throwing for 3,230 yards and 27 touchdowns. He also threw just three interceptions despite being sacked 52 times in 2023.

The Buffaloes open the season on Aug. 29 against North Dakota State. They visit Nebraska on Sept. 7.