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Reasons to be excited about Colorado Football, 2026
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CU finished last season with a 3-9 record.
The Buffs limped into this past off-season on a five-game losing streak, ending the forgettable campaign with the 121st-ranked defense and the 112th-ranked offense.
Pretty much every preseason magazine this summer is predicting CU will finish with a losing record in 2026. Most have the Buffs as the 14th- or 15th-ranked team in the 16-team Big 12.
So … not much reason for optimism about your Buffs, right?
Unless you are determined to look for it.
As it turns out, there are some reasons why Buff fans can look forward to how the 2026 may unfold …
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Julian Lewis is a five-star quarterback
Julian “Ju Ju” Lewis was the No. 7 quarterback in the Recruiting Class of 2025, rated as the No. 7 quarterback in the nation. The MaxPreps Player of the Year in 2023, Lewis had over 10,000 yards passing in high school – despite reclassifying and foregoing his senior season. Lewis was a longtime commit to USC and head coach Lincoln Riley, with scholarship offers from the likes of Georgia, Alabama, Miami, Michigan, Ohio State, Oregon, Texas … you get the idea.
Oh, and Lewis won’t turn 19 until September 21st.
Thrust into the lineup as a true freshman, Lewis played in four games last season, with two starts. Lewis finished the season completing 52-of-94 passes for 589 yards and four touchdowns and zero interceptions.
“Anytime you have the type of ability that that kid has coming out of high school and all the people that try to get around the kid who’s supposed to be the next coming, that creates trust issues,” said offensive coordinator Brennan Marion. “For him, it’s just about the consistency of him seeing me be me every day. It’s given him more confidence to be himself and open up to the group and just let his personality really thrive and show.”
Buff fans will expect more from – and get more from – Lewis this fall.
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Brennan Marion’s “Go-Go” offense will be a revelation
Okay, so CU’s new offense may not be transformative, but it will be a shock to the system for Buff fans.
Last season, CU averaged 125.6 yards rushing per game – 103rd in the nation.
Last season, CU averaged 20.9 points per game – 114th in the nation.
Brennan Marion is going to change all that.
Marion’s offenses over the last three seasons (UNLV OC 2023-24) have averaged 34.8 points per game. That was music to Coach Prime’s ears, especially since Colorado is 10-0 when scoring 30+ points dating back to 2024.
“Everybody we interviewed averaged over 30 points per game,” Coach Prime said of his search for an offensive coordinator. “30 points per game is our threshold. When we score 30 points, we win. When we don’t, we lose.
“I needed toughness, that mentality. I needed somebody who was going to apply pressure and understand how we get down around here. Not only did we find him, he’s much more than expected.”
Achieving 30 points per game is not an outrageous goal – it barely gets you into the Top 50 in scoring nationally … but a 50% jump in scoring for CU’s offense is a worthy (and achievable) goal.
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Coach Prime is healthy
It’s difficult to determine just how much Coach Prime’s illness hurt the Buffs last season.
Was Coach Prime’s struggles the primary reason for CU’s fall to the bottom of the conference? … Or just a convenient excuse?
“I’ve learned how to really live life and love the life I live, and live the life I love,” Coach Prime said of his recovery, declaring himself to be cancer-free this summer. “I’ve learned how to take up more time for myself and for my family. I’ve developed another level of understanding of how good God is. Last year at this time, I wasn’t as able, and I wasn’t as strong and as vibrant and as ready as I am right now. I’m thankful for everything I’ve gone through. It’s been a tremendous journey, but it’s going to be a good one. The script that’s being written right now is going to be unbelievable. I cannot wait to look at some of you and just smile.”
Coach Prime could have retired last summer, and no one would have blamed him for walking away. He could have called it quits after last season, and everyone would have understood.
But he’s back. He’s energized, determined, maybe even a little cocky.
Considering Coach Prime’s history, that could be a very good omen.
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CU has draft-worthy wide receivers
Brennan Marion’s Go-Go offense relies heavily on the run game, but the passing game should also thrive.
CU revamped its wide receiver room through the transfer portal this offseason, headlined by Danny Scudero, who led the nation in receiving last season at San Jose State. The Buffs also brought in Miami (Ohio)’s Kam Perry, and Texas’ DeAndre Moore Jr.
(Scudero started Fall Camp wearing a boot. But the boot is gone, and Scudero this week says he will be ready for the season, and on the field against Georgia Tech.)
Much will be expected of Scudero and DeAndre Moore, who may have a bit of a chip on his shoulder having been nudged out of Texas despite good numbers … oh, and he is now reunited with Brennan Marion, who was his coach at Texas.
“(Marion) is like an uncle, man,” Moore said. “I’ve known the guy since I was about 16-years old. He was recruiting me to Texas and we was playing cards and I was beating him in speed all night.
“My role is just however I can help the football team win. That’s what I’m here for, bro. If I’ve gotta go down on punt and make an impact, that’s what I’m going to do. If I gotta go stick my nose in and block for (my teammates), that’s exactly what I’m going to do. Whatever I can do to help the team, that’s my job.”
The CU wide receiver room goes 5-6 deep. With the ball being spread around, Scudero may not set receiving records this fall … but the Buff wide receivers as a group should do very well in this offense.
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The offensive line is going to be good (or at least not bad)
Nothing stops an offense from being effective faster than a poor offensive line. Even when the Buffs went 9-4 in 2024, the offense was largely Shedeur Sanders improvising the offense to success while running for his life.
The line constructed for this fall will likely be the best in Coach Prime’s four years in Boulder.
Three weeks from the opener, offensive line coach Gunnar White knows exactly when he’ll name his starting five up front.
“Night before the game,” White said.
He’s in no hurry, because the number itself might be negotiable. Colorado’s offensive line room is carrying eight, nine, maybe 10 players its coaches believe can play winning football, and rather than treat that as a problem to be solved, the Buffaloes’ four-man offensive line staff is treating it as the plan.
“It’s a great problem to have,” White said. “I would much rather have the ‘all right, we’ve got too many bullets’ than the ‘not enough’ situation.”
That includes entertaining something offensive lines rarely do: a rotation.
“Honestly, I would love it,” White said. “Defensive lines, they do it all the time — so why can’t the offensive line? I can’t make promises whether we’re going to do that or not, but I think we have the guys to be able to do that.”
The competition stays honest because the coaches keep it that way. Every rep is graded, every grade is posted, and nobody in the room is guessing where he stands.
“They’re going to tell you straight up: if you had a bad day, you had a bad day. And if this guy’s been beating you, he’s been beating you,” second-year guard Jayvon McFadden said. “We don’t really have ones, twos and threes. It’s kind of like a 1A-1B system, and the best man will play.”
Sounds good … fingers crossed that this optimism will turn into production.
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CU’s back linebackers should be able to cover for the apparent lack of talent and depth along the defensive line
The saga of Ezra Christensen continues to drag on. The question of whether the best defensive line transfer will get another year still hasn’t been decided. And, with each passing day, it appears that Christensen’s chances are growing dimmer (he’s asking for a preliminary injunction, and can’t practice or play until or unless the injunction is granted. Logic would suggest that if the judge believed in Christensen’s case, he wouldn’t drag out the ruling).
Even if Christiansen gets to be a Buff, the CU defensive line remains the biggest question mark on the team.
But, the deficiencies on talent and depth along the line may be mitigated by a solid group of linebackers, easily the best group Coach Prime has put together in Boulder.
Colorado linebackers Gideon Lampron and Liona Lefau have been named to the preseason watch list for the 2026 Butkus Award.
The award is presented annually to the nation’s top collegiate linebacker and honors Pro Football Hall of Famer Dick Butkus. The 51-player watch list — a nod to Butkus’ iconic No. 51 jersey — spans 42 schools, making Colorado one of just eight programs nationally with multiple selections.
Both arrived in Boulder this offseason through the transfer portal and, along with Tyler Martinez, headline a revamped Colorado linebacker room.
Lampron, a fifth-year linebacker from LaGrange, Ohio, joined the Buffaloes after a breakout 2025 season at Bowling Green, where he started all 12 games and served as one of four team captains. He piled up 119 tackles and 17.5 tackles for loss with 2.5 sacks and two forced fumbles, finishing the regular season as the only player in the country with more than 100 tackles and 15 tackles for loss.
Lefau, a fourth-year linebacker from Kahuku, Hawai’i, came to Colorado after three seasons at Texas, where he played in 42 games with 22 starts and totaled 139 tackles, eight tackles for loss and three sacks. He started all 12 regular-season games for the Longhorns in 2025.
Neither Lampron nor Lefau are likely to win the Butkus Award, but even having them nominated is a sign of how much the CU linebacker room has improved.
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CU may have two future first round NFL Draft picks at corner
For the most part, CU’s transfer portal philosophy has shifted from stars to stats, focusing more on production than high school recruiting rankings … except at cornerback, where Coach Prime has brought in potential stars.
At CU’s Media Day Friday, Coach Prime confidently declared Tennessee cornerback transfer Boo Carter as the next one who’ll grab the attention of NFL general managers, scouts and head coaches this fall.
“When scouts come out, he’s one of the first young men they ask about. Boo could be a pro this year for certain, but he’s be a bona fide top five pick if it was another year. But this year he would be a first rounder when he puts it all on tape and does what he’s capable of doing. That he’s the best athlete on the team,” said Coach Prime.
At the other potential start at corner is redshirt freshman Cree Thomas, who comes to Boulder from Notre Dame … and Thomas is not lacking for confidence.
“I would say that I’m just naturally a super confident football player, so I don’t think I needed the spring to reassure me of who I was,” Thomas said at Big 12 media day in Frisco, Texas. “I feel like I always knew I was that, but I mean, that means nothing to Buff fans right now. I feel like I need to go show them on Saturdays, and I owe it to them to go show it on Saturdays and really help them and win some games.”
It may be too much to ask to have two shut down corners wearing black-and-gold this fall, but you don’t have to squint too hard to see that as being a possibility.
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The schedule isn’t (quite) as bad as it looks
As a Buff fan who wants to win games, I would kill for the non-conference slate this fall of teams like Nebraska (Ohio, Bowling Green, North Dakota) or Indiana (North Texas, Howard, Western Kentucky). An all-but guaranteed 3-0 start would be just what the doctor ordered for a young quarterback and a team trying to find its identity under two new coordinators.
(And, for the record, the scheduling gods do favor the Buffs next fall. CU opens the 2027 season with three home non-conference games – Colgate, Northwestern, and Northern Illinois).
Instead of getting halfway to bowl eligibility before playing a single Big 12 game, CU has a tough go to open the season. The Buffs are the only Power Four school in the nation to play two non-conference road games against Power Four opponents, taking on Georgia Tech and Northwestern.
The thing is – and we’ll go into greater depth on this once the CU at the Game “T.I.P.S.” return in a few weeks – both Georgia Tech and Northwestern are getable.
Plus, if you are planning on being a good team, and not just a team looking for a .500 record, you want to play your toughest games at home, and not on the road.
CU’s toughest Big 12 games are against Texas Tech, Utah, and Houston … and all three come to Boulder.
If Coach Prime can catch lightning in a bottle for the second time in three years, this is the schedule to make it happen.
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Every team is undefeated in Fall Camp.
The 2025 Buffs were undefeated last August, were coming off of a 9-4 season, and had both coordinators returning.
Those Buffs, though, fell flat, stumbling to a 3-9 record, with only one Big 12 win on the ledger.
Can the Buffs due another 180 this fall, and prove all of the pundits wrong?
The preseason magazines all say “no”.
But those who bet against Coach Prime – a healthy, motivated and invigorated Coach Prime – do so at their own risk.
It’s August – why not be optimistic?
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