Colorado Basketball – March, 2023

CU, a 1-11 team, had a front page story on both ESPN and The Athletic this week … Coach Prime has never backed off on his expectations to win in 2023, but is it realistic? Will the national media coverage turn against him if CU’s brutal 2023 schedule proves too daunting? Will recruits? … Let’s find out …

Will CU be a Top 25 team in 2023? Or does CU continue have the worst roster in the Pac-12? … The first practice of Spring ball is Sunday, and questions about the Buffs – and Coach Prime’s ability to coach at the Power Five level – will begin to be answered …

Are you ready for some football? This podcast gives you a unit-by-unit preview of CU spring practices … Who are the names CU fans should be listening for when the coaches talk with the press? Which questions about the roster and depth chart should the Buff Nation expect to be answered this spring? … Let’s find out …

CU has two Thorpe Award winners in school history, and potentially has two more on the roster, with five-star cornerbacks Travis Hunter and Cormani McLain joining the team … That said, there are 21 scholarship defensive backs on the roster, a quarter of the 85 total allotment, so there will be some fierce battles in the secondary this spring …

We are still a week away from CU players donning pads for the first time in the Coach Prime era, but the program is already subject to heightened scrutiny … Two players have already run afoul with the law, and how Coach Prime deals with these players will be national news …

Two of CU’s top three tacklers last season were senior linebackers Josh Chandler-Semedo and Quinn Perry … Replacing them are ten scholarship players with six career starts among them … Will the transfers prove their worth, or will returning scholarship players fill the void? … Let’s find out …

The CU defensive line was arguably the worst unit on the team, but two starters – Jalen Sami and Na’im Rodman – do return … Defensive tackles coach Patrick Hill was the last assistant to be hired, and the first to leave (to the Minnesota Vikings) … Is the D-Line the most worrisome unit on the team? … Let’s find out …

Offensive line coach Bill O’Boyle on CU offense: “You have to be able to play in space, change direction. It’s exciting” … Three starters from last season’s offensive line return, including both tackles … But … Coach Prime has brought in seven new linemen, including six transfers who will compete for playing time right away …

Pac-12 watchers are anxiously awaiting word on the new media deal, as well as news on conference expansion … Realignment rumors are back. Will CU be a part of a “Four Corners” move to the Big 12? … Does a move to the “Big 16” make long-term sense for CU? … Let’s find out …

Tim Shannon is a sports law attorney with the Boulder firm of Hutchinson, Black and Cook … We discuss the short but wild history of NIL and NIL deals, Coach Prime’s “We’re not about the NIL, we’re about the NFL”, and CU’s options to stay competitive in the current NIL landscape …