Cormani McClain, a constant target of callouts from Colorado football head coach Deion Sanders, entered the transfer portal on April 16, but as Denver Sports' Jake Shapiro pointed out, the former Miami-to-Boulder flip will have limited options due to his grades.
"McClain hasn’t been seen practicing this spring," Shapiro prefaced before saying, "There have been rumors flying about him portaling for a long time. He should have plenty of suitors, though his grades are part of the reason he hasn’t been on the field and that may limit his transfer options."
As Shapiro notes, McClain joins the other two top-rated Buffs recruits ever, Darrell Scott and Marcus Houston, in leaving Colorado via the portal. McClain, though, had a much different experience than the other two; being the subject of scrutiny from one of the most famous personalities in all of football as CU found itself in an unrivaled spotlight throughout the first half of the 2023 season.
Cormani McClain leaves Colorado football after Deion Sanders' repeated callouts
McClain first started getting called out by Coach Prime in September following Colorado's first loss, a 42-6 rout at the hands of Oregon. When asked why McClain hadn't seen the field, Sanders was descriptive in his rant.
"Study and prepare," Sanders told reporters when asked what McClain can improve on to see the field (h/t Bleacher Report). "Be on time for meetings, show up to meetings. Understand the scheme. I check film time from each player so I can see who's preparing, so if I don't see that, you would be a fool to put somebody out there who's not prepared. That goes for all our players."
Sanders eventually admitted he was proud of McClain by season's end, but he would call out the corner in the offseason in a moment captured by Well Off Media where Coach Prime told Travis Hunter not to use the bathroom strategically "like Cormani."
McClain was one of the highest paid players from an NIL perspective, so his departure could open up CU's budget for talent elsewhere.