Colorado’s new offensive coordinator, Brennan Marion, has opened the floodgates. Bringing his star players from Sacramento State to Boulder in droves.
The first domino to fall was running back Damian Henderson II, who announced his commitment to the Buffs on Saturday night. However, on Sunday morning, Marion and Deion Sanders landed one of my top targets in the portal, fellow running back Jaquail Smith. In his true freshman season, Smith rattled off 511 rushing yards in eight games, averaging a team-high 6.7 yards per carry.
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Smith came alive late in the year for the Hornets, breaking out in two rain-soaked contests against Eastern Washington and Weber State. Against the Wildcats, he ran for a career-high 135 yards and two touchdowns on 17 attempts, flashing his elite acceleration and vision.
Those two games were just half of his 100-yard rushing games on the season, as he cleared the century mark two other times against Northern Colorado and Idaho. Smith was a three-star recruit out of Jones High School in Orlando, Florida, and rushed for over 1,800 yards in his senior season.
The 5-foot-11, 171-pound back doesn’t have as much size as Henderson, but he more than makes up for it with his intangibles and speed. The next level burst and patience had Sacramento State fans comparing Smith to some of the best running backs in program history, like Cam Skattebo, in just his fourth game.
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There’s no doubt in my mind that Smith can have an immediate impact on Colorado’s running game thanks to his experience in Marion’s unique offense. He has all the potential in the world to go down as one of the best signings the Buffs make in the 2025 transfer portal.
This article originally appeared on Buffaloes Wire: Colorado football Jaquail Smith commit transfer portal