College Football 2023 Future Awards Odds: Are Colorado Stars Primed to Win?

OK, let’s start with this: Count me among the ones who believed in Deion Sanders’ total teardown and remodel of Colorado’s football program.

Did I think Colorado was going to beat TCU on the road? I did not.

Was I certain that the 21-point spread against the Horned Frogs was absurdly wrong? I was and told everyone I could as such.

With that impressive debut, Sanders and Son – is that gonna be the title of a reboot/reality show/dramedy on Netflix at some point? – along with two-way stud Travis Hunter, has everyone going crazy in Colorado and across the country.

But damn if those kids didn’t look good.

Naturally, everyone is jumping on the Buffs’ bandwagon which will

A: Keep rolling and winning along, B: Hit a few speed bumps, or C: Topple over entirely from all of the hype.

I still think it’s somewhere in the middle. I predicted Colorado to win five games this season. Looks now like that could be six or seven, maybe more.

Definitely going to a bowl game, those Buffs.

But the rest of their schedule remains daunting.

They still have to play four Pac-12 teams ranked in the top 25: at Oregon, vs. USC, vs. Oregon State, and at Utah.

But here’s what Colorado’s upset victory over TCU has done: Moved the Buffs into the AP top 25 (No. 22) for the first time since 2020.

The Buffs were also ranked for two weeks in 2018, but have only finished a season in the Top 25 once (2016) in the past 20 seasons.

Coach Prime is now the second betting favorite to win the Bear Bryant Coach of the Year Award, after just one win, according to DraftKings Sportsbook, one of our favorite sites, along with many other great gambling sites in the U.S., including FanDuel Sportsbook, BetMGM and more. And all of these sites accept PayPal.

I still like Florida State’s Mike Norvell to nab it because I think his team is dynamite after watching the Seminoles’ demolition of LSU.

Let’s look at the current odds courtesy of DK:

Bear Bryant Award 2023-24

Mike Norvell (Florida State) +600

Deion Sanders (Colorado) +800

Kirby Smart (Georgia)  +900

Nick Saban (Alabama) +1000

Kalen DeBoer (Washington) +1200

Steve Sarkisian (Texas) +1400

James Franklin (Penn State) +1500

Ryan Day (Ohio State) +1500

Brian Kelly (LSU) +1600

Lincoln Riley (USC) +1800

Luke Fickell (Wisconsin) +2000

Dan Lanning (Oregon)  +2000

Jonathan Smith (Oregon State) +2000

Jimbo Fisher (Texas A&M) +2000

Marcus Freeman (Notre Dame) +2200

Kyle Whittingham (Utah) +2200

Mike Elko (Duke) +2500

How about the new Heisman Trophy odds?

Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders, Deon’s son who passed for a school-record 510 yards, including four touchdowns and zero picks, saw his odds to win the Heisman Trophy move from 100-1 to 28-1. Two-way stud Travis Hunter’s odds plummeted from 80-1 to 22-1. Here’s why: He caught 11 passes for 119 yards on offense and on defense he had two tackles and one incredible interception. Money has been pouring in on that dynamic duo.

ESPN’s research crew dug up this amazing stat and posted it on social media.

But let’s now look at the current Heisman odds. And it’s no surprise that USC quarterback Caleb Williams, who’s tyring to become the first back-to-back winner since Ohio State running back Archie Griffin, is still the front-runner. I still like one of these two other QBs to win the award. By the way, Michael Penix Jr.’s odds have been cut in half – +1600 to +800 – after his sensational season opener (450 yards, 5 TDs, no INTs) against Boise State.

Caleb Williams (USC)  +450

Michael Penix Jr. (Washington) +800

Jordan Travis (Florida State) +900

Sam Hartman (Notre Dame) +1600

Bo Nix (Oregon) +1600

J.J. McCarthy (Michigan) +1700

Jalen Milroe (Alabama) +2000

Joe Milton (Tennessee) +2000

Quinn Ewers (Texas) +2000

Drew Allar (Penn State) +2000

Drake Maye (North Carolina) +2200

Travis Hunter (Colorado) +2500

Shedeur Sanders (Colorado) +2800

What the hell … I’d say take a stab at all three of them.

Colorado is going to beat Nebraska this Saturday (Sept. 9) and then clobber Colorado State the next Saturday (Sept. 16) and then the buzz will be building even more in Boulder. May as well sprinkle a little on ‘em, especially Coach Prime. If he gets the Buffs to a bowl game – and he will – then that means serious consideration for the Bear Bryant Award.