The college football world wasn’t ready for Deion Sanders’ approach to building the roster for his first season as the head coach of the Colorado Buffaloes.

Upon arrival in Boulder, Sanders encouraged the Colorado football team to hit the transfer portal.

“We got a few positions already taken care of because I’m bringing my own luggage with me,” Sanders said in a recorded December team meeting. “And it’s Louis, OK?”

Sanders wasn’t bluffing. According to Sports Illustrated, Sanders’ staff has added 75 new players to the Colorado roster, including 50 from the transfer portal. More than 40 players with remaining eligibility after 2022 left the team using the portal.

Coach Prime’s heavy use of the portal drew some strong criticism from fans, media members and even some of Sanders’ peers. USC coach Lincoln Riley, however, is impressed by Sanders’ roster rebuild at Colorado.

The USC was asked about Sanders and the portal at Friday’s Pac-12 Media Day.

“I give (Sanders) credit,” Riley said, per Buffs Beat.” We all know what the rules are. We all know what the parameters are. And our job is to build the best teams that we can for the universities that give us the opportunity to do it. No excuses.”

Riley called it a “great job” of transforming an inherited roster. Whether the portal moves pay off, will ultimately be decided on the field.

“There obviously needed to be a roster transformation there in coach Sanders’ opinion, and he went about it aggressively,” Riley said Friday. “Obviously, the success of that for us or anybody else will be determined on the field as time goes on.”

“From the outside looking in, they’ve done a great job transforming that roster and bringing in some really good players,” Riley added, per Buffs Beat.

Colorado hosts USC on Sept. 30.