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Shedeur Sanders explains not opting out of Alamo Bowl: 'I don't do what other people do'

On3 imageby: Andrew Graham12/27/24AndrewEdGraham
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Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders — projected by many as the top quarterback in the 2025 NFL Draft class — made a bit of a surprising decision when he didn’t opt out of the Buffaloes bowl matchup against BYU in the Alamo Bowl. But for him, it was the natural decision.

Ahead of the matchup on Saturday night, Sanders explained that he wanted one more chance to play with his Colorado teammates in what will in all likelihood be his final college game. Further, he added that he’s never been afraid of taking a path others are turning away from.

“I don’t do what other people do,” Sanders said. “I feel like that’s even from the beginning. We went to HBCU and I had every offer in the country. I don’t really care what other people do. I’ll say it’s about the team, and it’s about everything I stand for. You know, it is about equality. Just because they projected X, Y, and Z, that don’t mean I can’t play with my X, Y, and Zs. You get what I’m saying? I got to play with my receivers. I’ve got to be able to play with the team, the O-line, everything like that because we may not ever have a chance to play again together on the same team.”

The 2024 Colorado team was a remarkable one, playing to the edge of College Football Playoff contention before slipping back from the pack, still to finish 9-3. It’s the best season for the Buffaloes in nearly a decade and a win on Saturday night would push the Buffaloes to the 10-win mark for just the third time this century.

And for Sanders, there’s another, simple reason to play: he just wants to cherish a final chance to play football with this group — a group he already once made a conscious decision to play with again, returning to school for the 2024 season.

“So it’s about cherishing the moment,” Sanders said. “It’s about knowing this is the final collegiate game, and each and every game we left it all out there. There’s no regret. I don’t ever want to go anywhere with regret, so that’s the thing. If I felt like anything negative, I wouldn’t have played this year. I was going first round last year regardless anyway, so — you feel me? It’s no difference. I would have just went.”