According to a Colorado football player source who spoke with AthlonSports' Steve Corder, the Buffs locker room is like "Grand Theft Auto" with guns, fights, and gambling -- and among the drama was the revelation from another player that Shilo Sanders bullied Cormani McClain during the Florida transfer's freshman season.
"Cormani was taking a lot of heat from everyone," said one anonymous former player. "At the same time Coach Prime was saying he was in the doghouse and needed to improve, Cormani was getting bullied by Shilo (Sanders). After the Oregon State game, Shilo slapped him several times, which left Cormani screaming 'I'm going to kill you' repeatedly. After that, you could tell he wasn’t mentally there. It’s hard when the coaches you trust are calling you derogatory names on the practice field."
McClain was Coach Prime's target of criticism throughout the 2023 season -- coming to a head before the USC game in an infamous rant where he accused McClain of skipping meetings and showing up late to practices -- but the prevailing thought was that the CB was enjoying the local flora in Boulder a little too much.
But when juxtaposed next to this yet-to-be-corroborated issue, which reportedly wasn't confined to just the Oregon State game, Deion Sanders' treatment of McClain figures to be the subject of think pieces in the years to come as more comes out.
Deion Sanders continues to criticize Cormani McClain even after Colorado football transfer
Coach Prime is still taking veiled shots at McClain even after the former Lakeland star returned to his home state and left Boulder behind.
During a July meeting captured by Well Off Media cameras, Deion alluded to going to the bathroom for long periods and skipping meetings, something he often called McClain out on. It's clear that he's still bothered by McClain for not reaching his potential, but it's hard to ignore the possible reason why.
Or maybe Coach Prime is bothered by what McClain knows. After the CB transferred and made his "playing for clicks" comment, McClain became public enemy No. 1 to everyone in the Buffs' locker room.
Deion destroying his credibility, or attempting to, could be the only way to keep a lid on a number of stories from 2023 that'd make Colorado look even worse.
As of now, this report has yet to be confirmed elsewhere. Stay tuned for updates to this situation.