Deion Sanders contends with key Colorado players entering transfer portal ahead of second season

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Deion Sanders was named head coach of the Colorado football program in December 2022. Shortly after taking the job, Sanders began using the transfer portal at an unprecedented level.

Sanders was taking over a program that finished the previous season with just one win. The Pro Football Hall of Famer has once again been active in the transfer portal during his second offseason in Boulder. 

By Dec. 21, 247 Sports ranked Colorado's transfer class in the top spot after it had signed 16 transfers.

The spring transfer portal opened Tuesday, and several notable Colorado players leaped at the opportunity to play elsewhere in 2024.

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Colorado head coach Deion Sanders walks the sideline against Arizona at Folsom Field in Boulder, Colo., Nov. 11, 2023. (Erick W. Rasco/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)

Projected starting offensive lineman Savion Washington headlined the list of Buffaloes players who entered the transfer portal. Washington started the majority of Colorado's games last season. The offensive line struggled to protect quarterback Shedeur Sanders, who was sacked 52 times. 

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Colorado did land five new offensive linemen during the winter transfer portal window, but Sanders will likely continue to evaluate the portal in hopes of adding depth.

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders, center, exits the field after a game against Oregon Sept. 23, 2023, in Eugene, Ore. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman)

Defensive linemen Chazz Wallace and Devee Harris also intend to leave, while defensive backs