Deion Sanders continues to add NFL pedigree to his coaching staff.
In a move that has been teased for some time now, Warren Sapp has officially been brought on to the Colorado staff, per Thee Pregame Show. Brian Howell of the Boulder Daily Camera clarified on Monday that Sapp is on staff as a graduate assistant and is enrolled in classes, allowing him to work with players on the field.
Sapp had an illustrious playing career that started at the University of Miami, where he won the Bronco Nagurski Trophy for the best defensive player in college football in 1994. Sapp was selected 12th overall in the 1995 NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Over the course of his nine-year run with the Bucs, Sapp made seven Pro Bowls, six All-Pro teams, won defensive player of the year in 1999, and helped the franchise win Super Bowl XXXVII. He later finished out his playing career with the Oakland Raiders before being elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2013.
Sapp’s expertise along the defensive line should provide a major boost for a revamped Colorado defensive line that includes plenty of transfers such as Quency Wiggins, Chidoze Nwankwo, Samuel Okunlola, Anquin Barnes and Taurean Carter.
Sapp does have some unofficial coaching experience, as he served as a consultant during camp with the Washington Commanders in the summers of 2022 and 2023.
Sapp was involved in some legal trouble after his playing career during his time as an NFL Network analyst. In 2010, Sapp was charged with domestic battery before the Super Bowl in Miami. Sapp was also arrested shortly after covering Super Bowl XLIX in 2015 in Phoenix on one count of soliciting prostitution and two counts of assault, and was subsequently fired from NFL Network. Both sets of charges were dropped shortly after the incidents.
The Buffs resume spring practice Tuesday after returning from break as they prepare for their spring game on April 27. The Buffs announced Monday that the spring game would kick off at 1 p.m. MT and will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Network.
