Deion Sanders took the stage at Big 12 media day in Frisco, Texas with an extra pep in his step.

The Colorado football coach is focused on getting the Buffs back to their winning ways after a disappointing 2025 campaign. There’s plenty of reason for optimism from his perspective, starting with his improved health.

Coach Prime also sat down with a small group of local reporters on Tuesday. Here are three of the most important things he said.

Deion Sanders is around the Buffs more than ever

Colorado senior and team leader Ben Finneseth said on Tuesday that this offseason is the most he’s ever seen Coach Prime around.

“He (Deion Sanders) is in the facilities every day, first one in there and last one out,” Finneseth told DNVR. “He damn near might be sleeping, I’m not going to lie.”

Coach Prime battled and beat bladder cancer last offseason, keeping him away from many summer activities. He now says he’s at “full strength and full energy,” but that wasn’t the case this time last year.

“I’ve always been around, let’s get that straight, but I wasn’t around last year,” Deion Sanders said Tuesday. “This time last year, I came here and I had on shorts up under my suit and I had on a hoodie up under.

“It’s because I had lost a large amount of weight and I didn’t want a lot of people to know. I was smiling, styling, profiling and trying to do the best I could to falsify how I was really feeling. So it’s a different day.”

Coach Prime’s presence has been felt in Boulder, too. The Buffs signed another impressive transfer portal class and already have 20 commits in the 2027 recruiting class.

Sanders recently hosted retreats for Colorado coaches and players at his home in Texas, further signifying just how healthy and invested he is.

“I’m back and I’m healthy,” Deion Sanders said. “I got my thought process back, my ‘me’ back.

“I sat there with a couple of staffers and we watched every single guy that’s in that locker room on film and made the decision on every single guy, every single recruit.”

Colorado recruiting momentum due to ‘conscious change’

Colorado’s 2027 recruiting class is third in the Big 12 and top-40 nationally.

Coach Prime has historically said that he wants 15-18 high school signees each year. That’s why it’s a surprise to some that the Buffs already have 20 commitments, including a few blue-chip recruits, especially after a 3-9 season.

One reason for the Buffs’ recent recruiting momentum is a change in philosophy.

“It’s a conscious change,” Deion Sanders said Tuesday. “We just changed the thought process and how we did it. I wanted to look at every kid. I know what I wanted and I know what we needed.

“We changed the way we went about it. We changed how we targeted the kids. It was the change and that’s why we’re getting the type of kid that we want.”

Julian Lewis has to grow due to others’ expectations

Redshirt freshman quarterback Julian Lewis was one of six Buffs to represent Colorado at Big 12 media day. The former five-star recruit attended the event last year but this time around, he has a different level of expectations on his shoulders.

Lewis threw for 300 yards and two TDs in his first career start but only played in four games a true freshman to preserve his redshirt. Now entering the 2026 season as the clear starter with a new offensive coordinator (Brennan Marion) and dynamic weapons at his disposal, Lewis must live up to the hype of his high school ranking.

“He’s grown tremendously,” Deion Sanders said of Julian Lewis. “I don’t think he has a choice with Brennan (Marion). I’m not the only one pushing him. Teammates are pushing him and he’s pushing himself.”

Colorado added four transfers receivers who were very productive at their previous schools. Danny Scudero, Kam Perry, DeAndre Moore Jr., Ernest Campbell and the Buffs’ returning WRs are counting on Julian Lewis to develop rapidly.

“He’s going to have to consistently grow because we have some men on the team that have an expectation of not only winning, but we have some receivers that have an expectation of continuing to do what they’ve done before they got here,” Deion Sanders said.

“They don’t want to digress and we need someone to meet them at the crossroad. So he has to come on and he has to do it and I think he can. I believe he can.”

Follow Colorado Buffaloes beat reporter Scott Procter on X.