In August of last year, Jaylen Striker picked up an offer from Colorado and OLBs coach Brian Michalowski. Shortly following the Buffs' OT comeback win against Nebraska on Sept. 7, he committed to CU, which was the first program to offer him.

Striker enrolled at Colorado in January and has been working out with the team since. He is a product of Independence Community College in Kansas, where he spent the 2018 and 2019 seasons.

It might be fair to say Striker found himself at Indy, in the classroom, on the football field and as a young adult.

The latter half of Striker's high school career was marked by uncertainly stemming from tragedy. When he was 16 years old, Striker lost his father. In dealing with his father's death, he struggled with balancing academics at Manatee High in his hometown of Bradenton, Florida.

"There was no chance of me qualifying out of high school," he told CUSportsNation last summer. "A lot of coaches wanted me but I was never [academically] eligible. It wasn't because I didn't have the brains, but when my dad passed away and I lost all focus."

The loss of his father doubtless altered the trajectory of Striker's football career. But Independence assistant head coach and defensive coordinator Jason Martin saw something in Striker; Martin went on to recruit Striker, bring him to Independence, Kansas, and help set him on a path to become a D1, Power Five football player.

While that journey was a winding road with twists and turns, far from a straight path, it did much to shape Striker into the man and player he is now.

“Coming out of high school he had some hurdles he had to get over," Martin said. "During that summer, his first summer up here at Independence, it was a struggle just to transition (to the) culture shock coming from Tampa Bay, Florida to Independence, Kansas. That was a huge transition for him. But he stuck through it — that’s one thing I would say."

"Even though they were tough times, he stuck through it and he believed."

Former Buffaloes secondary coach Travares Tillman had this to say about Striker when the latter signed with Colorado on Dec. 18 of last year.

"He's got an old soul — I really like him. He's going to bring a lot of wisdom into the secondary."

Martin echoed those thoughts when talking about Striker.

“I know for one thing, his mentality is going to spill into the program," Martin said. "What I mean by that is that he’s a natural leader and he has a great work ethic. That’s one thing that he’s had since he arrived at Independence Community College."

In 2019, Striker helped the Pirates to an 8-2 record, recording 24 tackles, 11 PBUs and a pick in the process. Of course, it was that season that landed him his offer from the Buffaloes, but in order to achieve success on the gridiron, Striker first had to succeed in the classroom.

"When he first got to (Independence), education wasn’t his main priority," Martin said. "It was more about football and quite frankly and honestly, I told him that I wasn’t going to allow him to play football until he got on track with school. He had the ability to play as a true freshman for us, but I knew that it was bigger for him to get on track academically, so we redshirted him that first year."

While Martin knew redshirting Striker was the best move in terms of the long term, Striker at first struggled to see the benefits in the short term.

"It was a strain in a relationship from that because he wanted to play and knew he could play, but at the end of the day, he saw the bigger picture and it all worked out," Martin said. "Now he’s a 3-for-3 — he has three years of (eligibility)."

Striker's presence on the Buffaloes continues the somewhat of a pipeline from Indy to Colorado that's been present in recent years. Outgoing senior CB Delrick Abrams was an Independence alum, as is current junior LB Jamar Montgomery.

On that note, it is interesting to observe that Martin in the younger brother of new Buffs CBs coach Demetrice Martin.

Furthermore, the younger Martin coached with Michalowski at Garden City Community College in 2015 and also with CU TEs coach Taylor Embree at UCLA.

How the Buffs will continue to recruit Independence players under Karl Dorrell's new coaching staff remains to be seen, but if Martin is sure of one thing, it's that the Buffs have gotten a heck of a player and young man in Striker, who fully has his priorities in line.

"The relationship I have with him — that’s one of the closest relationships I ever had with a player, the one I have with Jaylen Striker," Martin said. "He's just a great kid. He’s grown up. His maturity, over the last years, is amazing, from where he came from to where he is now. He understands what’s at stake and he understands the importance of education — that’s really what I’m proud of."

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