Everything must be seeming like an out-of-syllabus for Deion Sanders’ Colorado Buffaloes right now. Last year, they had handed a 49-24 loss to the Utah Utes. Fast forward to 2025, and they are now healing from a 53-7 blowout loss heartbreak against the Utes. As if that setback was not enough, here comes something fresh. An injury list might leave Deion with a folded eyebrow, in tension of their fate against Brent Brennan’s Arizona Wildcats. 

Two days are left before Deion and his boys open the gates of the Folsom Field for the Wildcats. That’s when Colorado beat writer Brian Howell dropped a concerning update. “Colorado has 9 defensive tackles on its roster and it’s possible only 4 will be available to play on Saturday. #cubuffs.” Already, a disparity is present in the injury list of the two teams. There is only one Arizona player, OL Jordan Brown, who is sidelined for the weekend face-off. But Deion will be playing without eight players, who have been confirmed to be “out” for the game. Among them are the defensive tackle duo, Amari McNeill and Christian Hudson.

Adam Munsterteiger further confirmed, “DT Amari McNeill from doubtful to out. WR Sincere Brown from questionable to probable. ATH Isaiah Hardge from questionable to doubtful. TE Zach Atkins, OL Larry Johnson III, LB Jeremiah Brown and S Carter Stoutmire from probable to available.” With eight games, Deion’s DT McNeill holds 16 total tackles and 7 solo tackles. Last season, too, he missed the final two games due to injury. 

The UCF transfer, Hudson, had yet to leave his mark on Deion’s squad and now remains sidelined. The Buffaloes did not have a great game against Houston, as they took a 36-20 loss, but Tawfiq Thomas had a dream night, with two solo tackles. As if the defense stats were not concerning enough for Deion, he now has to deal with the injury woes of players on the “doubtful” list. 

Against Utah, Colorado’s defense allowed 422 rushing yards while its offense produced only 140 total yards. To pass Saturday’s exam against Arizona, Colorado’s defense must ace its run-stopping test. Even without a mountain of carries, Ismail Mahdi’s efficiency speaks volumes. The Wildcat back is averaging 5.8 yards a run and sits atop Arizona’s rushing chart with 445 yards, 11th best in the Big 12. So, it’s going to be tight for Deion to run the show without his main wheels. 

Now, how are Deion’s staff and Colorado defensive ends coach and defensive run game coordinator George Helow planning to go about it? Praising Mahdi, he said, “We can’t let him bounce up the second level and get on the edge. The guy’s really fast. He’s a 5-foot-9.5, 185-pound back. When he was at Texas State, he had multiple 1,000-yard rushing seasons back-to-back.” Deion’s program will be counting on defensive ends Keaten Wade, Arden Walker, London Merritt, and Alexander McPherson to slow Mahdi. Meanwhile, Coach Prime addressed a glaring trend. 

Deion Sanders’ growing frustration over Colorado’s injury plague

Something has struck Deion seeing the injury list. Every time, according to the Buffs’ head coach, Colorado’s list of injured players is longer than their opponent’s. And Deion could no longer keep his doubt to himself. In a conversation with play-by-play announcer Mark Johnson, Deion asked, “Why do we always have like a hundred guys, and I look over at the other team, and they only have two? Are we the only ones being honest?”

Well, Colorado fans have noticed this, too. Going by the latest injury report against Arizona, the Wildcats only have one player sitting on the “out” bench against eight Buffs players on the list. That was the case against Utah, too. For the Utes’ face-off, Deion could not count on 17 players, who remained sidelined due to injury. In the Utah program, only three players stayed limited. 

As of October 30th, Colorado has 20 names on the availability report as compared to one for Arizona. “The last thing I want is for my name to be slandered for lying. I don’t lie. I don’t placate nothing, let’s tell the truth. And we do. I guess everyone else is lying. There’s no way. Nobody’s that healthy,” came Deion with a sharp reply. 

While he deals with a heavy injury list, here comes another hoopla for Deion Sanders and co. They will now have to rely on what’s happening in MLB to know about their broadcasting fate for their game against Arizona. As Brian Howell reported, “Programming note for this Saturday’s Colorado-Arizona game: If the Blue Jays win Game 6 of the World Series on Friday, the CU-Arizona game will be broadcast on Fox. If the Dodgers win and force a Game 7, the CU-Arizona game will be on FS1. #cubuffs.” As the noise grows louder, can Deion and company tune it out and stay patient?