New Colorado head football coach Deion Sanders isn’t wasting any time in getting his staff together.
Sanders could be cleaning house with the Buffaloes’ current staff and there are already reports and rumors of several coaches coming to Boulder, including a pair of FBS head coaches.
Pete Thamel of ESPN reported Monday afternoon that Kent State head coach Sean Lewis is leaving the Golden Flashes to become the offensive coordinator at CU.
Meanwhile, a source told BuffZone on Monday night that Jackson State assistants Tim Brewster, Andre Hart and Kevin Mathis, former Florida Atlantic head coach Willie Taggart and former FAU director of player personnel David Kelly are all joining Colorado’s staff and have already been working in the building at CU.
Sanders, who has been the head coach at Jackson State since Sept. 21, 2020, was introduced Sunday as the Buffaloes’ head coach.
On Sunday, Sanders met with CU players and defensive lineman Jalen Sami asked him, “What position coaches are you keeping?”
“Probably none,” Sanders said.
Sanders then added, “It’s going be one of the best staffs you’ve ever seen assembled. They’re coming. Best recruiting staff you’ve ever seen assembled. They’re coming.”
That staff appears to be coming together fairly quickly – although not officially, as CU has not announced any additions.
Lewis, 36, has been the head coach at Kent State the last five seasons. The Flashes were 10-37 in the four years before he got there and 2-10 in his first season (2018). They’ve gone 22-21 since then, including 5-7 this year.
Kent State averaged 12.8 points per game in 2017 before Lewis arrived. They have averaged at least 28.4 points the last four seasons.
It’s unclear what role Taggart will play with the Buffs, but indications from a source are that it could be a support staff role, rather than an on-field coaching position.
Taggart is a former quarterback and quarterbacks coach at Western Kentucky. He has been a head coach the past 13 seasons at WKU (2010-12), South Florida (2013-16), Oregon (2017), Florida State (2018-19) and FAU (2020-22).
During Sunday’s meeting with players, Sanders introduced Hart and Mathis to the Buffs. Both have been with Sanders at Jackson State the past three seasons, with Hart coaching linebackers and Mathis coaching cornerbacks.
Prior to JSU, Hart and Mathis coached with Sanders at Trinity Christian School in Cedar Hill, Texas. Mathis and Sanders were teammates with the Dallas Cowboys from 1997-99. Mathis also played for the New Orleans Saints (2000-01) and Atlanta Falcons (2002-06).
Brewster, the former head coach at Minnesota (2007-10), joined Sanders’ staff at Jackson State this past summer after two seasons as assistant head coach/tight ends coach at Florida. He is likely slated to be the Buffs’ tight ends coach.
Brewster and CU athletic director Rick George both played for Illinois in the 1980s, with George having a hand in recruiting Brewster to the Illini. Brewster coached tight ends for the Denver Broncos from 2005-06 and has also worked at North Carolina, Texas, Mississippi State, Florida State, Texas A&M, Florida and with the NFL’s San Diego Chargers.
During Sunday’s meeting with players, Sanders also introduced the team to Kelly, who is likely to be the Buffs’ director of player personnel.
Several other coaches have been rumored to be joining Sanders’ staff, as well.
FootballScoop.com has reported that Sanders is targeting Alabama associate defensive coordinator and safeties coach Charles Kelly as the Buffs’ defensive coordinator.
There was another report Monday, however, that former Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer could be a candidate for the defensive coordinator job. Zimmer is an analyst at JSU this season and was Sanders’ position coach with the Dallas Cowboys from 1995-99.
Other reports have Nick Williams coming to CU as the defensive line coach. Williams has spent the past two seasons as a defensive analyst at Texas A&M.
