CU jersey retirements cause a stir
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Travis Hunter, left, and Shedeur Sanders of the Colorado Buffaloes in November Photo: Dustin Bradford/Getty Images
The University of Colorado will retire the jerseys of former Buffs Shadeur Sanders and Travis Hunter at CU's spring game on Saturday.
Why it matters: Hunter and Sanders, CU head coach Deion Sanders' son, will become the fifth and sixth players in Colorado football history to have their numbers retired.
Friction point: The decision to preserve Hunter's No. 12 legacy is understandable, if premature. He is only the second Heisman winner in school history and a two-time first-team All-American. Shadeur Sanders' selection has drawn more criticism, with some calling it recency bias at best and nepotism at worst.
Reality check: Sanders spent two years at CU, was never a first-team All-American, went 13-11 as a starter and made one bowl game.
- Some, like former Buff Chad Brown, have pointed out that Sanders is probably not even the greatest player to wear No. 2 at CU. Cornerback Deon Figures was a key player on CU's 1990 championship team, won the Jim Thorpe Award and is in the College Football Hall of Fame.
- Buffs greats such as Alfred Williams, Eric Beiniemy, Darian Hagan and Kordell Stewart have not had their numbers retired.
What they're saying: Fans, media and former players have weighed in.
- Former CU player and coach Darrin Chiaverini posted on X that there needs to be a "cool-off period" before numbers are retired.
- David Bakhtiari, a great CU player in his own right, posted the team was "trying to be slick thinking you can just sneak that one in there."
- Denver Post columnist Sean Keeler led off his column with "2 soon."
Caveat: While CU has claimed Nos. 2 and 12 will be "officially untouchable," retiring jerseys does not work in college as it does in the pros. With teams often carrying more than 100 players at a time, numbers in college simply can't stay out of circulation for long.
- Three of the Buffs' previously "retired" numbers — Bobby Anderson's No. 11, Byron "Whizzer" White's No. 24, Joe Romig's No. 67 — are already back.
- Rashaan Salaam's No. 19 was declared off-limits for 19 years in 2017, but it will come back.
The bottom line: Debate in sports is nothing new, and controversies surrounding jersey retirements will exist as long as the practice continues (hello 'Melo).