Colorado coach Deion Sanders wants to settle on one starting quarterback instead of rotating players.
Sophomore Ryan Staub unexpectedly outplayed the top two quarterbacks in a recent win against Delaware.
Sanders has not officially confirmed who will start the next game, but Staub has been taking first-team reps.
Colorado football coach Deion Sanders declined to confirm that sophomore Ryan Staub will start at quarterback in his team’s next game Friday night Houston but he also said he doesn’t want to play “musical chairs” with his three top quarterback candidates and instead wants to settle on one.
Sanders then referenced the game of roulette and his former jersey No. 21.
“That’s the goal,” Sanders said Tuesday, Sept. 9. “I don’t want to play musical chairs with quarterbacks. Why would I want to come to the game and do that? To spin the darn wheel and it lands on, you know, I mean, I wasn’t good at roulette… I would put everything on 21 black any day. You better believe that. Hey, I don’t want to put them on three numbers, man. I want one thing. Yeah, one thing and hopefully we get to that point.”
Sanders’ quarterback situation got an unexpected jolt last week in a 31-7 win against Delaware. Colorado (1-1) previously brought in two quarterbacks to replace Sanders’ son, Shedeur, who is now with the NFL’s Cleveland Browns. Both of those quarterbacks were listed as the top two quarterbacks on the depth chart before the first two games – Liberty transfer Kaidon Salter and celebrated freshman Julian “JuJu” Lewis.
But then Deion Sanders pulled a surprise in the second quarter against Delaware. He inserted a third quarterback into the game, Staub, who outplayed the other two with three touchdown drives in four possessions. He also gave the team an energy injection that the other two didn’t match.
This week, Staub was seen working with the first-team offensive line in a video posted Monday by Deion Sanders Jr.
“Staub has been doing a phenomenal job doing and getting a majority of the reps,” Sanders said. “But I haven’t made that assessment and decision yet.”
What is the situation with Deion Sanders’ three quarterbacks?
Each has a different set of skills and history, which adds to the delicate nature of trying to keep them all happy with only one ball to share between them:
∎ Salter led Liberty to a 13-1 season in 2023 and is in his final year of college eligibility. He started the first two games of this season for Colorado, including a 27-20 loss at home against Georgia Tech in the season opener. He led his team to a touchdown and a field goal on its first two drives against Delaware, but in his first game he also missed key throws and was tentative at times with his feet. Deion Sanders said after the opener he wanted him to be more of the dual-threat quarterback he was at Liberty.
∎ Lewis, the heralded freshman from Carrollton, Georgia, is more of a traditional drop-back passer. At age 17, he also has played the least of the three quarterbacks. He played three series in his team’s win against Delaware and completed 2 of 4 passes for 8 yards. He needs more development than the other two quarterbacks, but there’s also pressure to keep him involved for fear that he might transfer out if he’s not getting enough attention.
∎ Then there’s Staub, a redshirt sophomore who was the backup quarterback in 2023 and 2024 behind starter Shedeur Sanders. He started the final game of 2023, after Shedeur fractured his back. He played well in that 23-17 loss at Utah but barely played again until Saturday against Delaware, when he came in the game with 45 seconds left in the first half. The Buffaloes led at the time, 10-7. By the time he left the game in second half after playing four series, the Buffs led 31-7. He electrified the team by throwing two touchdown passes of 21 and 71 yards.
Staub is the hot hand, but playing him extensively risks making the other two unhappy, both of whom have business agents to help drum up income for their name, image and likeness (NIL).
‘He (Staub) took advantage of his opportunities, and that’s something that Coach Prime preaches all the time,” Colorado running back Simeon Price said. “And that goes for every single one of us. When your number is called, you go out there and show out.”
Shedeur Sanders called Ryan Staub after game
Deion Sanders said his son Shedeur called Staub after the Delaware game. He labeled Staub ‘the ultimate teammate’ and ‘ultimate character guy.’
‘First of all, you gotta understand, Staub is a lovable dude, man,’ Deion Sanders said. ‘Like everybody who’s played here previously have reached out to him and and congratulated him. … He’s always been a standup guy. No matter who’s starting, he’s always been there in support.’
One thing that Deion Sanders said was important for quarterbacks was to go ‘off-script’ when a play breaks down and make ‘three plays on his own’ per game.
‘A quarterback has to make at least three plays a game for us to be successful,’ Sanders said.
Staub showed that kind of moxie against Delaware. Now it looks like he’ll get another chance Friday night at Houston.
Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com