What's new
AllBuffs | Unofficial fan site for the University of Colorado at Boulder Athletics programs

This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

  • Prime Time. Prime Time. Its a new era for Colorado football. Consider signing up for a club membership! For $20/year, you can get access to all the special features at Allbuffs, including club member only forums, dark mode, avatars and best of all no ads ! But seriously, please sign up so that we can pay the bills. No one earns money here, and we can use your $20 to keep this hellhole running. You can sign up for a club membership by navigating to your account in the upper right and clicking on "Account Upgrades". Make it happen!

Top Colorado Recruits Leave Past 4 Years

HawaiiBUFF

Club Member
Club Member
After reading the news about recruiting that everyone has been contributing, I noticed a reoccurring theme. That theme was top football prospects that have left the state of Colorado over the past few years. That prompted me to write about the top recruits since 2012, that have left the state. I did research on each recruit and compiled a list of their accomplishments as well as where they are now. I did this because, like everyone else, I would like Colorado to land top recruits within our state and not let them go elsewhere.

*Note - I only added 4 stars or higher according to Rivals

2012:

Joey O'Connor, 4 Star OL, Ohio State - O'Connor never played for Ohio State. He was on the team and after redshirting his Freshman year, he than decided to transfer to Colorado State. News broke that O'Connor chose to retire from football shortly after arriving on campus in Fort Collins due to chronic knee issues.

Alex Kozan, 4 Star OL, Auburn - Koza, was a highly recruited offensive lineman out of high school. He ultimately chose to attend Auburn University. He has started 25 games over the past 3 years. He has been called the anchor of their OL and is set to be the leader as a senior this upcoming fall. He started against Florida State in the 2013 National Championship. He is also likely be a top NFL draft prospect after graduating.

Cyler Miles, 4 Star QB, Washington - Miles was another highly recruited prospect from the 2012 class. He decided to redshirt his Freshman year after arriving in Seattle. After doing so, he ended up being quite productive during two seasons for the Huskies. He was slated to compete for a starting job during the 2015 season, but has since ended his career due to chronic rip injuries. This will be debated as Jake Browning a 5 star recruit also had stepped on campus.

2013 - 37/61 (60.7%) 418 Yards Passing, 4 TD / 2 INT
2014 - 219/329 (66.6%) 2397 Yards Passing, 17 TD / 4 INT

Shane Callahan, 4 Star OL, Auburn - Callahan and Kozan both elected to attend Auburn the same year after high school. Their college careers has been drastically different. Callahan saw the field briefly as a Freshman against non-conference foes. He decided to transfer during the summer after not seeing much playing time his Sophomore year to Colorado. He is likely to start for the Buffaloes this upcoming fall.

Paul Thurston, 4 Star OL, Nebraska - During his time at Nebraska he served as the backup center. He never started and has since decided to transfer. He has found a new home in Fort Collins at Colorado State for this upcoming fall. He is a graduate transfer and will be eligible to start immediately. He is expected to start at center for the Rams.

Evan Baylis, 4 Star TE, Oregon - Redshirted his Freshman year after leaving Colorado. Since than Baylis has been somewhat productive. Oregon runs their high octane offense and TE's are usually used as receivers and not blockers, so his production is likely to continue to increase this fall.

2013 - 71 Yards Receiving (0TD)
2014 - 143 Yards Receiving (1 TD)
2015 - 229 Yards Receiving (1 TD)

2013:

Mitch Parsons, 4 Star TE, Vanderbilt - Although being a highly recruited TE out of high school, Parsons never played for the Commodores. He redshirted his Freshman year and has since transferred to Colorado State where he will be seeking a starting role this fall.

Chris Fox, 4 Star OL, Michigan - Chris chose to enroll at Michigan over a handful of suitors. He ended up only playing 1 game in his two years with the football program. He was forced to leave the team because of medical injuries. He has since joined the Michigan football team again as a student assistant.

2014:

Christian McCaffery, 4 Star RB, Stanford - Like his father Ed, Christian decided to attend Stanford University. He is, as many know, a legitimate star running back, punt and kick returner as well as receiver for the Cardinal. He has contributed since his Freshman year and will likely be a first round pick in the 2017 NFL draft. Not to mention, that he was the runner-up to Derrick Henry for the 2015 Heisman Trophy and will be the front-runner for the 2016 trophy.

2014 - 300 Rushing Yards (0TD), 251 Receiving Yards (2TD), 245 Return Yards (both kick and punt) = 796 All-Purpose Yards
2015 - 2,019 Rushing Yards (8TD), 645 Receiving Yards (5TD), 1200 Return Yards (both kick and punt) = 3,864 All-Purpose Yards

Kalen Ballage, 4 Star ATH, Arizona State - Ballage was a coveted and highly recruited prospect out of Colorado during his senior year of high school. He chose ASU over what some speculated Colorado in the dying days of recruiting. Ballage has seen his minutes steadily increase over his time with the Sun Devils. He is expected to have a starting role this fall.

2014 - 126 Rushing Yards (3 TD), 64 Yards Receiving (1TD)
2015 - 653 Rushing Yards (4TD), 60 Yards Receiving (0 TD)

2015:

Avery Anderson, 4 Star DB, Nebraska - Anderson chose to attend Nebraska. He redshirted this past year as a Freshman and looks to contribute on the field this fall for the Cornhuskers.

Eric Lee, 4 Star DB, Nebraska - The second of the Colorado 4 Star commits, Lee also redshirted his Freshman year and looks to compete for a starting roll this fall.


Overall, it has been a mixed bag for the top prospects that chose to leave the state of Colorado. Surprisingly, or as some might say not surprisingly, no 4 star in-state prospects have chosen to stay home out of high school. Even though all have left during this past few years, many have returned via transfer. It would be interesting to see how every recruit has panned out since leaving the state, but let's be honest, I aint got no time for that!
 
Last edited:
I don't care what Van Diest's current star rating is. Based on the film I've watched, he is the best player in Colorado and he is as solid as can be for the Buffs. I'll be shocked if he doesn't have a monster year and end up rated as a high 4* or 5* by all the services. Recruiting is on the rise.
 
Callahan is expected to start?

I think he'll win the RT job. He was working at that spot all spring, but then in the post-spring depth chart he was listed as the backup at RG with Kronshage/Haigler as the co-RT1s.

OL is probably the most interesting set of position battles this fall.
 
I don't care what Van Diest's current star rating is. Based on the film I've watched, he is the best player in Colorado and he is as solid as can be for the Buffs. I'll be shocked if he doesn't have a monster year and end up rated as a high 4* or 5* by all the services. Recruiting is on the rise.
JVD is a great player and I hope he has a year that vaults him into a high 4* category, but between he, Moretti, McCaffrey and Elliss, I think he is the 4th best prospect, as most recruiting services currently have projected. Until Santino Marchiol transfered to IMG in Florida, Van Diest was the 2nd best prospect on his own team.
 
JVD is a great player and I hope he has a year that vaults him into a high 4* category, but between he, Moretti, McCaffrey and Elliss, I think he is the 4th best prospect, as most recruiting services currently have projected. Until Santino Marchiol transfered to IMG in Florida, Van Diest was the 2nd best prospect on his own team.

The bold was very debatable.
 
The bold was very debatable.
Between us scrimmaging and playing a playoff game against them two years ago and then having followed the both of them last season, it was my opinion that Santino was the better player. Could have also been the fact that Santino made more plays against us as a stand up LB than VD did as a hand in the ground DE. Their offer lists should also speak for themselves. Again, please don't take this as a slight to JVD... The kid is a monster and has big time potential, I just think Santino has looked like the better player, up to this point.
 
Between us scrimmaging and playing a playoff game against them two years ago and then having followed the both of them last season, it was my opinion that Santino was the better player. Could have also been the fact that Santino made more plays against us as a stand up LB than VD did as a hand in the ground DE. Their offer lists should also speak for themselves. Again, please don't take this as a slight to JVD... The kid is a monster and has big time potential, I just think Santino has looked like the better player, up to this point.

Nah. Not taking it as a slight at all. Just that we were debating it way before JVD committed to CU when we were first doing the 2017 recruit profile in the Futures sub. Some people thought Marchiol only had more attention because he and his parents were so actively marketing him. The fact he left for IMG ends up playing into that narrative. A number people felt that JVD is going to be the better college player.

I don't know. Just was saying it was very debatable since we'd, in fact, had a debate. :D Both are excellent players.
 
Nah. Not taking it as a slight at all. Just that we were debating it way before JVD committed to CU when we were first doing the 2017 recruit profile in the Futures sub. Some people thought Marchiol only had more attention because he and his parents were so actively marketing him. The fact he left for IMG ends up playing into that narrative. A number people felt that JVD is going to be the better college player.

I don't know. Just was saying it was very debatable since we'd, in fact, had a debate. :D Both are excellent players.
Agreed. Marchiol's Rivals profile still lists Colorado as Medium interest, but I think we can assume his moving to IMG means he has no real interest in CU.
 
I think he'll win the RT job. He was working at that spot all spring, but then in the post-spring depth chart he was listed as the backup at RG with Kronshage/Haigler as the co-RT1s.

OL is probably the most interesting set of position battles this fall.
No inside info, but I assume that move on the pencil depth chart says "Ok, we gave you a spring to earn a tackle spot and that's not working, si back to guard you must go".
 
Agreed. Marchiol's Rivals profile still lists Colorado as Medium interest, but I think we can assume his moving to IMG means he has no real interest in CU.
I believe he trimmed his list to three schools. Ole Miss, Tennessee and one other school I forgot.

Very debatable about JVD vs. Marchiol. Until this past season I didn't see the upside with Santino but he came into this season in better shape and played faster than he ever had. Before that I thought he was going to end up a defensive lineman in college but not anymore. Really hard to pick between the two IMO, they are both very talented players but I think Santino has more prototypical size for his position in the college game. I also believe JVD plays with a ton more passion and toughness. Toss up.
 
We even lost top recruits in the glory days. Some kids just want to leave. As a matter of fact, our recruiting in other states depends on it. I'm not sure why a Colorado kid would be beholden to stay home anymore than a California or Texas kid would be in their respective state.
 
We even lost top recruits in the glory days. Some kids just want to leave. As a matter of fact, our recruiting in other states depends on it. I'm not sure why a Colorado kid would be beholden to stay home anymore than a California or Texas kid would be in their respective state.
I don't blame them for wanting to leave and certainly don't think they owe it us to stay, but it hurts when they do leave because we're not a California or Texas when it comes to the number of quality recruits.
 
Some obviously hurt more than others. Ballage hurts to this day. MCCaffery was never going to come here, but Ballage- man. That one still stings. A lot.

I'm still pissed about Kemp, too. I don't know what CU ever did to piss off the Pagano clan, but the list of guys we've lost because of it includes Tony Bosselli, Scott Lockwood and Carlo Kemp. All Boulder kids.
 
Some obviously hurt more than others. Ballage hurts to this day. MCCaffery was never going to come here, but Ballage- man. That one still stings. A lot.

I'm still pissed about Kemp, too. I don't know what CU ever did to piss off the Pagano clan, but the list of guys we've lost because of it includes Tony Bosselli, Scott Lockwood and Carlo Kemp. All Boulder kids.

The Ego of the Pagano's is a major turn off. When Carlos mom did not want him to go to CU because Carlo, "would be looked at as the savior". Calling themselves Colorado's First Family of Football. I am glad he went elsewhere.
 
The Ego of the Pagano's is a major turn off. When Carlos mom did not want him to go to CU because Carlo, "would be looked at as the savior". Calling themselves Colorado's First Family of Football. I am glad he went elsewhere.

I got to see him in one game last year. He may have had an off night but I was not impressed. He was a non factor against an average team, and they lost.
 
I got to see him in one game last year. He may have had an off night but I was not impressed. He was a non factor against an average team, and they lost.


I bet you saw the Horizon game then. I was at the game and said the same thing. The coach from Horizon told me he was playing running back and took a pretty good shot to the knee. After that he was not the same player for the rest of the game.
 
I bet you saw the Horizon game then. I was at the game and said the same thing. The coach from Horizon told me he was playing running back and took a pretty good shot to the knee. After that he was not the same player for the rest of the game.
Yes it was the Horizon game. I was excited to see him play. The boys on the team were not impressed with him either. Those are the kinds of games you have to dominate if you are him.
 
The Ego of the Pagano's is a major turn off. When Carlos mom did not want him to go to CU because Carlo, "would be looked at as the savior". Calling themselves Colorado's First Family of Football. I am glad he went elsewhere.
This is a bunch of crap. Carlo and his mom are great people and have been nothing but gracious during the whole process. Get over your sour grapes and stop disparaging a kid and his mom for choosing the school he has wanted to play for since he was a kid. His mom's comments were accurate, there would have been a tremendous amount of pressure for him to be the local savior; primarily from this board.
 
This is a bunch of crap. Carlo and his mom are great people and have been nothing but gracious during the whole process. Get over your sour grapes and stop disparaging a kid and his mom for choosing the school he has wanted to play for since he was a kid. His mom's comments were accurate, there would have been a tremendous amount of pressure for him to be the local savior; primarily from this board.
His dream school was Notre Dame not Michigan.
 
This is a bunch of crap. Carlo and his mom are great people and have been nothing but gracious during the whole process. Get over your sour grapes and stop disparaging a kid and his mom for choosing the school he has wanted to play for since he was a kid. His mom's comments were accurate, there would have been a tremendous amount of pressure for him to be the local savior; primarily from this board.
I have no sour grapes over Kemp going to Michigan, but nobody views an OLB/DE as a program savior, regardless of being local or not. That sentiment is a little arrogant, iyam.
 
This is a bunch of crap. Carlo and his mom are great people and have been nothing but gracious during the whole process. Get over your sour grapes and stop disparaging a kid and his mom for choosing the school he has wanted to play for since he was a kid. His mom's comments were accurate, there would have been a tremendous amount of pressure for him to be the local savior; primarily from this board.
Don't disagree about them being great people and all. I'll take your's and other's word on that. But I don't buy, for a second, the whole "added pressure" thing. That's a bunch of garbage.
 
Seems like there is a big difference between locals being excited about a kid of his caliber staying home and putting pressure on him.
 
Well, I don't know him or his folks but as a competitor, you relish the pressure. If you don't, do something else.
 
The point is that a kid growing up in Boulder shouldn't have Notre Dame or Michigan as his "dream school".

There's a history with the Paganos that goes way back. I don't know what it is or its origins, but it's pretty obvious.
 
Back
Top