BOULDER – The Colorado Buffaloes’ season started with a thunderous roar.
They were the talk of the nation with their new head coach, Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders, bringing in big recruits, some from his former team at Jackson State. He orchestrated a roster using the transfer portal and high school commitments, bringing back only 12 players from the previous Buffaloes' football team. As the season began to near, there were conversations being made about whether CU hosted the best cornerback duo in the nation, as they had sophomore two-way star Travis Hunter and freshman five-star Cormani McClain, who was rated the top corner in his graduating class. When McClain decided to flip his commitment from the University of Miami, which was close to his home, the majority of people thought he would come in and immediately be a starter.
Once the season began and a couple of games had gone by, McClain had yet to touch the field as a cornerback, only making appearances on the special teams unit. Because of that, the media’s biggest question was, “Why is McClain not playing?”
At first, Sanders explained how he simply was not ready. That notion made sense at first, as he was fresh out of high school, underweight, and part of a team in one of the toughest conferences in college football in the Pac-12. After McClain entered the game late during Colorado’s blowout loss to the Oregon Ducks, the question about his playing time resurfaced in a press conference a couple of days later. This time, Sanders kept it real.
“Study. Prepare. Be on time for meetings,” he said. “Show up to the durn meetings. Understand what we’re doing as a scheme. Want to play this game…Desire to be the best in this game at practice, in the film room, and on your own free time. You do know that I check film time for each player… and that’s not about just Cormani, that’s about a multitude (of players). So if I don’t see that, you would be a fool to put somebody out there and they’re unprepared.”
In the following week, as the team prepared to host the University of Southern California Trojans, it was made obvious that Coach Prime’s callout put McClain in check. The corner got his act together, and soon enough he earned a starting spot against USC, which then translated to the same against Arizona, Washington State, and Utah. He also played in games as a second or third-stringer against Arizona State, Stanford, Oregon State, and the Univerity of California, Los Angeles. McClain, from the eyes of the fans, appeared to have turned his mentality around.
"He's been a lot more focused,” Coach Prime said after McClain’s start against Arizona, "a lot more understanding of the expectation in what we want from him, that we've challenged him tremendously all year long."
Calling him out publicly was one of the best things that could’ve happened to McClain this season. He must have realized that in order to stay on top, he must either put in the work or lose everything.
McClain ended the season with 13 tackles (six solo, seven assisted) and two passes deflected. One of the passes deflected was a huge stop against USC – he also blew up a fake PAT in that game. Those plays showed the true talent the corner possesses, as in most cases, plays like that wouldn't have usually been read or stopped.
McClain still has a lot to learn, but had an impressive season after a rocky start. He and the Buffs are now going to a new conference, the Big 12, which is known to produce NFL-level wide receivers. As the competition stiffens, the back is in for a challenging year. But under the graceful watch of his head coach, who is seen by the masses as the greatest player to ever play his position, McClain and the Buffs will surely be able to hold their own.
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