Seemingly demoted coach ‘being built up’ to replace Coach Prime as Colorado HC
Demoted Colorado football offensive coordinator Sean Lewis, who is now ceding play-calling duties to quality and control coach Pat Shurmur, may not actually be in the process of being demoted, according to Denver Sports’ Jake Shapiro — instead, it may be that he’s in the process of being built up to one day replace Coach Prime at the helm of the Buffs.
“Lewis is tied into the Buffs future plans it seems, with the way they have recruited and it was apparent he was being built up as the coach in waiting if Prime decided to leave,” Shapiro wrote.
How that plan is coming along is unclear, though, and Shapiro does put a lot of the blame on CU’s near-upset of USC on September 30 falling short and the historic collapse against Stanford on October 13 unfolding at Folsom Field.
“Even with the overall numbers being decent for Colorado’s offense the cracks started to show as far back as their first loss against USC,” Shapiro prefaced before saying, “The Buffs likely would have pulled the upset on the Trojans had Lewis not messed up. And Lewis and Sanders are responsible for the school’s most epic collapse against Stanford, scoring only seven points in the second half while the Cardinal scored 36.”
Is Coach Prime leaving the Colorado football program?
It may seem on the surface like Shapiro is saying the grooming process for Coach Prime’s successor is already well underway. But everything Deion Sanders has said about his sons Shedeur and Shilo’s futures indicates that there will be at least a second year in Boulder.
To support that notion, Coach Prime’s manager, Constance Schwartz-Morini, went on The Rich Eisen Show and repeatedly claimed that Sanders isn’t planning on leaving Colorado anytime soon.
“He’s staying,” Schwartz-Morini prefaced before repeating, “He’s staying. He’s staying. Perfect fit. I think he’s having too much fun there. He’s just been able to be who he is really deep down inside, driving his tractor and wearing his cowboy hat.”
Helping matters is that not only Coach Prime’s sons are dug in with the Buffs, but his daughter Shelomi Sanders is a member of JR Payne’s women’s basketball team; one who appears to be a key component of the program’s culture.
Colorado and Coach Prime appear tied to the hip for the time being, to the benefit of Buffs fans in Boulder and abroad.