BOULDER — Warren Sapp had talked to Deion Sanders about joining his fellow Hall of Famer in the coaching ranks before, but it hadn't clicked for Sapp until he showed up on Colorado’s campus. The legendary defensive lineman was visiting longtime friend Sanders prior to Week 1 last season and was receiving treatment in the hot tub inside the Buffaloes’ facility when defensive lineman after defensive lineman came up to introduce themselves and ask questions. Sapp used to spend time in the offseason working with NFL players.
He'd tell them to let him know when they were in Miami so he could give pointers during workouts. He’d rarely get a call. At CU, that hasn’t been an issue.
“These kids called me at 5:30 in the morning (saying), ‘Hey coach, you want to come watch tape with me?’” Sapp recalled Tuesday. “It’s crazy. I’m like, ‘Yeah, give me a purpose to get off the couch.
’” “Trust me, I was on my couch watching MSNBC,” he said with a laugh. “I’m loving this.” If you saw Sapp on the sidelines during the Buffs’ win at TCU last season, and during a home loss to USC a few weeks later, you could see he was getting the itch to coach.
NFL Hall of Famer Warren Sapp throws a football on the field before Colorado's 2023 season opener against TCU on Sept. 2, 2023 at Amon G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth, Texas.
Sapp was officially hired as a graduate assistant on Deion Sanders' coaching staff this spring. After getting his degree from Texas Christian Seminary University last year, Sapp officially joined Sanders’ staff as a graduate assistant this spring and got right to work with the defensive line. He calls them his “babies.
” “For someone that never wanted to do this, I’m really addicted to it right now,” Sapp said. “The babies are really giving me a purpose in life and I’m enjoying it.” Thirty years since he was a star at the University of Miami, some things about the game have changed drastically and some have stayed the same.
For instance, a lot of the technique used on the defensive line is the same that Sapp used to excel in both college and the NFL. The style of play on both sides of the ball is different. Sapp said the ratio of pass attempts vs.
rushing attempts has flipped. “The best part about it is I’m learning every day,” Sapp said. “They’re teaching me, too.
The game ain’t the same. The way I played it, you can’t play it like that anymore. It’s 21st-century football.
I’m learning, they’re learning and we’re gonna learn together.” Retired NBA player Kevin Garnett, left, laughs with retired NFL player Warren Sapp before a football game between the Colorado Buffaloes and the USC Trojans on Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023, at Folsom Field in Boulder, Colo.
(Timothy Hurst/Denver Gazette) Still, the biggest adjustment Sapp has had to make now as a coach has nothing to do with how the game's changes over the last 30 years. “Coaching’s a whole different thing,” Sapp said. “This is the first time I’m going for a championship that I’m not leading.
That’s a beautiful thing that now I have to relinquish the will and let somebody else drive. It’s a beautiful thing to watch my kids — day in and day out — get a little better.” He’s not doing it alone, though.
It’s a three-man crew coaching up the defensive line — from the quick pass rushers to the big nose tackles. Alongside him are defensive ends coach Vincent Dancy and defensive line coach Damione Lewis, who was a few years behind Sapp as a standout player at Miami. “From the beginning, he came behind me at Miami so he’s one of those guys that was the next ‘Baby Sapp’ so he’s been trying to catch me his whole life,” Sapp said with a laugh.
“Now, we’re putting it together and seeing if we can turn (our players) into something that’s better than both of us. We have a great push-pull relationship. We see the game the same way and I just love it.
If you’ve got a guy that loves the game, we’re gonna do this thing.” Colorado defensive line coach Damione Leiws watches players go through drills during a preseason practice on Monday, Aug. 5, 2024 in Boulder.
If there’s one thing Sapp wants to change about what he saw from the Buffs last season — before he admittedly had to turn it off — is stopping the run. He guaranteed CU will be much better than a team that was 107th in the country in run defense. “That won’t happen with me here,” Sapp said.
“No, we’re gonna earn our right to rush (the quarterback) by stopping the run.” Whether it's newcomers like Arizona State transfer B.J.
Green and Pittsburgh transfer Dayon Hayes on the edge or returners like Shane Cokes and Amari McNeill on the inside, what he’s seeing from his players is a good start. The season kicks off when North Dakota State visits Boulder on Aug. 29.
“A lot of depth,” said Sapp when asked what’s stood out to him. “I tell them, ‘We got five (defensive) ends on a two-lane highway, so y’all better fight for those reps because they’re gonna go fast.’ Inside, we’re just building depth and want the guys to be nice and solid.
“We’re just mixing and matching. We’ve got bullets. You get shot with a .
38 or a 9mm, you pick.”.
