Kordell Stewart on Deion Sanders, Colorado: I think the foundation is settling in

The Colorado spring game on Saturday was one of the most hyped spring college football games in recent memory. Over 47,000 Colorado fans paid to catch a glimpse of their new team under their new head coach, Deion Sanders. The Buffaloes had plenty of their former legends on hand for their highly anticipated spring game, including former Colorado legend Kordell Stewart, one of the greatest players in school history. ESPN nationally televised the Buffs’ spring game and in the third quarter, one of the best reporters in the business, ESPN’s Quint Kessenich, took some time to speak with Stewart about his thoughts on Deion Sanders as the new leader of the Buffaloes’ football program.

“It’s working. You know, when building a house, you never say I’m gonna wake up and see the kitchen get done before I like the house. Right? You go through the process of getting the Bobcats and bulldozing the property and putting down the foundation,” Stewart said. “And all you can do is be excited. Think about the merchandising–second in the country. The 2023 class will be Top 25. So, when you put that all together, the trajectory is going in the right direction. And I think the foundation of the program is settling in,” Stewart said on the sidelines.

According to the On3 Industry Rankings for the 2023 cycle, the Colorado Buffaloes’ recruiting class finished ranked 33rd in the country, up 21 spots from their position in the 2022 cycle, when their class was ranked 54th in the nation.

The Buffaloes made several highlight plays on Saturday in the spring game, including a beautiful 98-yard touchdown strike from Shedeur Sanders to wide receiver Montana Lemonious-Craig. There were a number of blocked kicks on special teams’, which the Buffaloes clearly need to work on. Sanders addressed that briefly in his postgame interview following the spring game.

Stewart, nicknamed “Slash” during his playing career, finished his career in Boulder as one of the greatest players to ever suit up there. He shattered several records there, including the most passes completed, most passing yards, and the most passing touchdowns. His senior year, Stewart propelled the Buffaloes to a No. 3 ranking in the final polls after they finished 11-1 in 1994. He also earned second team All-American honors that season, after he racked up over 2,700 all-purpose yards and 17 total touchdowns.