The Colorado Buffaloes kick off the 2026 season with a Week 1 road trip to face the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in Atlanta.
It’s the second leg of a home-and-home series between the two teams. The pair met in Boulder last season and Georgia Tech left town with a 27-20 win. The Buffs ended up going 3-9 last season with a 1-8 record in Big 12 action. Georgia Tech ended up with a 9-4 record and a 6-2 mark in ACC action.
That prompted plenty of change at Colorado. Head coach Deion Sanders changed out both of his offense coordinators and made a significant makeover to his roster through the transfer portal. After nearly reaching the Big 12 title game in 2024, Sanders is out to prove that the Buffaloes can turn things around quickly
Here’s a game preview, prediction and pick.
Two Key Players to Watch
Julian Lewis, Colorado Quarterback
It’s his offense now. The former five-star quarterback sat for much of last season. But the but the Buffaloes brought in offensive coordinator Brennan Marion from Sacramento State and he’s employing an offense that emphasizes the vertical passing game. That should allow the Buffs to take advantage of Lewis’s big arm. Now the question is accuracy and protection, especially after all-Big 12 offensive lineman Jordan Seaton left the program to transfer to LSU. Lewis can be a star. But he needs time to prove it.
Alberto Mendoza, Georgia Tech Quarterback
College football fans know the last name, but they don’t know the game — yet. Alberto Mendoza is the younger brother of Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who led the Hoosiers to their first national championship and was the No. 1 overall pick in April’s NFL draft. Alberta Mendoza transferred to the Yellow Jackets after the season and is now the starter. This offense allowed Haynes King to get on NFL radars in a good way. It could do the same for Mendoza, who has thrown just 25 collegiate passes.
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Colorado’s Remade Defense
Sanders also changed out his defensive coordinator as he hired former Virginia Tech coordinator Chris Marve after James Franklin took over in Blacksburg. Colorado doesn’t have a single returning starter from last year’s squad and that could be a good thing. The defense was porous a year ago and this gives Marve an opportunity to start from scratch. The unit has talent, but the Buffs have had a chance to test them in live game action yet. Watch defensive tackle Santana Hopper. The former Tulane transfer could be a difference maker inside.
Watch Danny Scudero
Colorado saw some of its best offensive players either graduate or hit the transfer portal after last year’s awful campaign, but Sanders was able to lure some key talent on the offensive side to help Lewis out. Danny Scudero was the most notable one. The wide receiver who played at San Jose State last season finished the campaign with 1,297 receiving yards, a mark that led the country. Scudero should become Lewis’s most important target this season.
Prediction: Georgia Tech 23, Colorado 20
This is a hard game to project. The Buffaloes were bad last year but Lewis has the potential to be a great quarterback. Sanders did his job in the transfer portal and got talent but most of it hasn’t played together. The defense only has five letterwinners returning from a year ago and while they look more talented than 2025, it’s impossible to know if that defense will come together on opening night.
Georgia Tech was a much better team, but it flipped a lot of talent from a year ago and anytime you make a change from an experienced quarterback like Haynes King to an inexperienced quarterback like Alberto Mendoza, it should give people pause. The game is in Atlanta so give the Yellow Jackets the edge — a slight one.
