While Colorado saw several other players entering the transfer portal, Cormani McClain’s situation is a different one. He was a coveted 5-star recruit that Coach Prime was able to flip from the Miami Hurricanes to Colorado for the 2023 season. Although he was the highest-ranked player in Colorado since 2008, his tenure as a Buffs player was nowhere near anyone’s expectations. 

A true freshman in Deion Sanders’ 2023 recruiting class, McClain was received with high hopes as a standout player out of Lakeland, Florida. But as the season progressed, Coach Prime called him out for not giving his best and didn’t include him in the starting lineup. In September, he told 247Sports, “[McClain]’s got to prepare. Study, prepare, be on time for meetings… desire rk be the best in this game, at practice, in the film room, and in your own free time.” And now that he’s leaving, Coach Prime has something to say while waving him goodbye.

Coach Prime wishes the best for Cormani McClain’s future 

In an interview, DNVR Buffs asked Coach Prime his take on the surprising news of Cormani McClain entering the spring transfer portal. Wishing the best for him, he said, “I pray to God that he goes to a program that challenges him, as well as holds him accountable and develops him as a young man. Unfortunately, we weren’t the program that could accomplish that.”

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A lot of hype was built around Cormani McClain when he became one of the Buffs as a No. 1 cornerback. But the hype was short-lived as he and his HC started butting heads and he didn’t replace Travis Hunter during his injury because Coach Prime thought he was “unprepared.” In his first and last season in Boulder, McClain appeared in nine games and started only four, finishing with 13 total tackles, one TFL, and two pass breakups. But coming to 2024, it looks like Colorado isn’t the program for him, as well as with the other players entering the spring transfer portal. 

Players leaving Colorado for the transfer portal

After the spring transfer portal window opened on April 16, Colorado already lost ten players after Cormani McClain’s latest decision. McClain joins fellow DBs Myles Slusher and Jaden Milliner-Jones in leaving Coach Prime’s program in 2024. Three offensive linemen have also announced their decision to enter the portal – Savion Washington, Isaiah Jatta, and David Conner.

With the departure of Washington, Coach Prime will have to replace all their five starting OLs for the upcoming season. On defense, the Buffs lost DL Chazz Wallace and EDGE Devee Harris while on the offensive side, Colorado lost a couple more players in WR Tar’Varish Dawson and TE Chamon Metayer. It’ll be interesting to see if more players are set to leave before the portal closes on April 30.

Do you think all these departures are par for the course or is Coach Prime’s flawed coaching style getting exposed here? Let us know in the comments.