Chip Kelly gives his thoughts on Colorado's use of transfer portal

When UCLA takes on Colorado this weekend it’ll be a clash of two programs built in very different ways. Despite that, the transfer portal has been a major factor for both.

But where Chip Kelly has used the transfer portal after being meticulous about his recruiting in his first several seasons, Deion Sanders used the transfer portal to flush his roster right away. The results have been palpable.

“It’s just a new era. When I came in five years ago, six years ago you couldn’t do that,” Kelly said. “Now you can. It’s just how you do it and how you choose. I think you evaluate the players in the program and see where they are, then can you get players to upgrade at the position? That’s what Deion’s done.”

Kelly seemed to be a fan of the transition Sanders has enacted, which has relied heavily on transfer portal players.

The Buffaloes got out to a hot start to the season, and while some of the hype has faded, there’s no doubt whatsoever that Colorado is a significantly better team than it was a year ago, in large part thanks to the transfer portal.

“The record speaks for itself,” Kelly said. “They were 1-11 last year, they’ve won four games this year. So it’s working. He’s done a great job there and we’re going to have a battle on Saturday against him.”

Chip Kelly admires Deion Sanders

Transfer portal use aside, Kelly seems to be a big fan of Sanders as a coach. He’s had a chance to interact with him in various capacities, including that of a coach speaking to a father.

“He brought Shedeur (Sanders) to camp, so we had Shedeur at camp here a couple years ago,” Kelly said. “I think he’s great. I think he’s done an unbelievable job there. I think he’s great for college football, I think the attention and the buzz that he’s brought to this game.”

Then there’s the personal angle.

“I also admire him. He’s a little bit old school in terms of his approach, in terms of how he does things,” Kelly said. “I think it’s the same way he was when he was a player. He had a tremendous amount of talent, but he’s got an unbelievable work ethic in terms of what he does and how he performs and what he puts into it, and I think that’s what he’s asking from his players and that’s what he’s getting from his players. So it’s really impressive what he’s doing.”