The Pregame Show’s Christopher “Uncle Neely” Neely says the departures at Colorado are not a meltdown. They are market moves.
The popular Buffaloes insider and content creator, known for deep access to Coach Prime’s program, told viewers that most players are making decisions driven by opportunity and compensation.
“This is 2025. This is business now,” he said, and later added that the vast majority are leaving for bigger paydays.
That idea frames Jordan Seaton’s decision to enter the transfer portal on January 12.
Seaton started every game he played in Boulder, 22 games across two seasons, and arrived as one of the crown recruiting jewels for Deion Sanders.
He was a five-star out of IMG Academy, ranked No. 18 nationally in the 2024 class and the top offensive tackle in that cycle.
He committed to Colorado on national TV and chose the Buffs over Ohio State, Tennessee, and Oregon, a recruiting coup that marked a defining moment in Sanders’ early tenure.
On the field, Seaton showed pro traits in pass protection and upside to refine his run game.
Seaton Departs Colorado; NIL and Opportunities Drive Modern Transfers
Pro Football Focus gave him an 83.9 pass blocking grade, while his run blocking graded 52.0, a split that scouts see as promising: strong protection now with clear room for growth.
That combination, plus his draft eligibility timeline, makes him exactly the type of player who will draw intensive NIL interest.
Seaton’s farewell post mixed gratitude, grief, and encouragement. He began by reflecting on his time at Colorado and thanking those who helped shape him.
“As I reflect on my time at Colorado, it’s hard to put into words what this chapter has truly meant to me,” he wrote.
He called the program home and said he is deeply grateful for every moment. He invoked Justice Elliott by name, saying Elliott’s belief in him “continues to guide and motivate me.”
He thanked coaches and staff one by one and closed by telling his teammates to keep grinding and keep believing. Those lines show this was an emotional choice, not a petty reaction.
But Uncle Neely insists that emotion and business can coexist. He reminded viewers that transfers now look like professional moves.
“This ain’t transferring in 1990,” he said, urging fans to understand players evaluate exposure, development, and compensation the way athletes in a market do.
For a player like Seaton, who has starting tape, a national pedigree, and NFL upside, testing the market is logical.
Seaton’s exit is the top story in a much larger roster shake-up. Colorado expects 16 players to enter the portal next cycle, with the ripple effects felt across the roster.
The departures lean defensive but touch almost every unit. Players planning to leave include safeties such as TJ Branch and Terrance Love, defenders like Jehiem Oatis, Brandon Davis-Swain, and Gavriel Lightfoot, cornerbacks Noah King and Teon Parks, linebacker Mantrez Walker, ends and tackles including Alexander McPherson, Christian Hudson, and Tawfiq Thomas, plus skill players like Omarion Miller and Dre’lon Miller.
That follows a brutal offseason that already saw more than 30 scholarship players leave after the 2025 season.
At the same time, Colorado has been aggressive in reloading. Sanders and his staff have brought in more than 30 transfers and signed a transfer class ranked among the top 25 nationally according to 247Sports.
The program also added newcomers and recruits such as Isaiah Hardge, Liona Lefau, Gideon Lampron, Cooper Lovelace, and Samuel Okunlola, signaling that the staff is balancing immediate roster needs with longer-term development.
The churn is part consequence and part strategy: players will pursue the best market opportunity while the staff uses the portal to remake the roster quickly.
The immediate on-field effect is obvious. Seaton was expected to anchor left tackle and protect the quarterback’s blind side.
Colorado’s offensive line struggled in 2025, allowing a high volume of sacks, and losing a starter who started every game he played creates a major hole in experience and continuity.
Replacing his pass protection while improving the run blocking that scouts flagged will be the top priorities this spring.
Where Seaton might land is already the subject of industry chatter. On3’s Pete Nakos and other outlets name Oregon and Texas as early front-runners, with LSU, Miami, Ole Miss, Texas A M, and Texas Tech also often mentioned.
For those programs, Seaton’s pass protection polish and NFL projection make him a high-value target.
For Colorado, the calculus is difficult: accelerate development of current players, search the portal for replacements, or deepen NIL investment to retain studs. Each approach costs time, money, or both.
Uncle Neely’s view is blunt and practical. He said most players are not fleeing dysfunction. They are following an opportunity.
The game changed the day name, image and likeness money became real for prospects and college athletes.
Schools with deeper NIL networks and more cash availability will pull top players. In that light, losing a player of Seaton’s profile is painful but predictable.
Jordan Seaton leaves with clear gratitude and clear intent. He thanked Rick George, Coach Prime, the position coaches and staff, and the fans who embraced him.
“This chapter may be closing, but the impact of this experience and the people who helped shape it will stay with me for life,” he wrote.
That balances appreciation for the past and ambition for what comes next, captures the modern college athlete’s dilemma.
For Colorado, the challenge now is to respond swiftly and smartly. The program has already shown it can reload through transfers and recruiting, but replacing a foundational tackle and shoring up a defense that is losing multiple pieces is an immediate test.
For fans, the moment stings. For players, it is a market. For coaches, it is a chessboard that requires both recruiting skill and financial creativity.
Seaton’s move matters because of who he was as a recruit and what he became on the field. It matters because it highlights how NIL and the portal have remade roster building.
And it matters because behind the headlines are human choices, players weighing loyalty, development, family, and future earnings. Uncle Neely calls that business. Jordan Seaton called it life.
