In an era where the transfer portal dominates headlines and five-star recruits are treated like royalty, it’s stories like Ben Finneseth’s that remind us why college football still has heart.
In front of the entire locker room, Coach Prime made headlines this weekend at the Black & Gold game, by awarding Finneseth a scholarship.
LET THE WORK SPEAK.
— Colorado Buffaloes Football (@CUBuffsFootball) April 20, 2025
Ben Finneseth is on SCHOLARSHIP❗️@Ben_Finneseth x #GoBuffs pic.twitter.com/ijxS8dyhgi
The 6-foot-2, 205-pound safety from Durango has been through it all. One of the only pre-Coach Prime players left at Colorado, Finneseth redshirting in 2021, and worked his way into a regular role on special teams. He appeared in three games in 2022 and was even named special teams captain against that lone win against Cal. An injury cut his 2023 season short after just two games, but he bounced back in a big way this past season.
In 2024, he played in all 13 games and was one of the Buffaloes most dependable special teams guys, recording 12 total tackles—eight of them solo—and logging the fourth-most special teams snaps on the team. He lined up on all four units: kickoff, kickoff return, punt, and punt return.
In high school, he led Durango to a state title during an undefeated COVID-shortened season, starred on both sides of the ball, and even wrestled his way to a 15-3 record.
Not to mention, Finneseth is also a biomedical engineering major. Yeah, he's no joke.
Coach Prime said it best: “You earned it, and I love you.”
He certainly did. You gotta love these in-state walk-on stories!
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