Shedeur Sanders graduated from the University of Colorado on Saturday at Folsom Field, ending a four-year college path that stretched across Colorado and Jackson State. He earned a degree in sociology.
The graduation came after Sanders had already built one of the most decorated résumés in school history. He won the Johnny Unitas Award in 2024, was the unanimous choice for Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year and was named first-team All-Big 12 by every publication that selected the team. He threw for 4,134 yards with 37 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 2024, producing a 117.0 NFL QB rating and a 165.9 college passer rating.
Sanders completed 651 of 907 passes in two seasons at Colorado, a 71.8% completion rate, for 7,364 yards, 64 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. Across his college career, he finished 1,267 of 1,808 passes for 14,353 yards, 134 touchdowns and 27 interceptions. He also threw a touchdown in an NCAA Division I record 49 straight games and became one of two Division I quarterbacks to throw for 14,000 yards while completing 70 percent of his career passes.
Colorado’s path to this moment was unusually modern. Sanders took online coursework during his time with the Buffaloes and kept doing so after he was named the starting quarterback for the Browns last season. Coach Prime said in 2024 that he did not even know if his son had ever taken a class on campus in his college career, adding that most schooling is online now and that college students miss the best part of campus life when everything happens off-site.
That odd blend of old and new is what made the scene at Folsom Field stand out. Sanders had already had his jersey retired before he graduated, a rare order of events for a player whose football profile had long outpaced the usual college script. The degree closes the loop on a career that made him a star on Saturdays, but the path he took to get there was built as much through online classes as campus life.
