He wasn’t the first and certainly won’t be the last, but Adam Hopkins’ move to Colorado football was one of the most notable steps in the recruiting path for Deion Sanders and the Buffs.
The Peach State prospect, known as one of the top two-wayers in the South as the Colorado head coach was in his day, was once a stint at Auburn University. The program also, of course, went through a coaching change after the 2022 season, and the Thomasville, Ga. Thomas County Central standout would return to the open market soon after.
20 days later he was one of the Splash commitments of the early signing period and selected the program without having attended Boulder.
“It was definitely a lot and a lot of stress for my guys and me too,” Hopkins said Colorado on Athlon recently. “But God works in mysterious ways, so maybe being[in Auburn]wasn’t right for me, so it opened up another opportunity for me to pursue and fill.”
Instead of playing in neighboring Alabama, one of Georgia’s best players is gearing up for Pac-12 country. Hopkins will make an official visit to Boulder this weekend, along with droves of top junior class recruits for the first high-profile Junior Day weekend of Sanders’ tenure.
“Coach Deion, he’s a great guy,” he said. “Everything is fine with him, I like what he is talking about.”
Sanders is credited with starring in many of the national fights Colorado participates in on the recruit path, but Hopkins’ recruiting traces back to other coaches who worked under the new coach at his last stint.
“There were a couple of coaches at Jackson State who were already recruiting me,” he said. “Coach Deion reached out to me like the third day he was there. I feel good about the coaches I knew, Coach Nick (Williams), Coach Brett (Bartolone), I knew them. So I feel like I know her. “
Hopkins, who is listed on the All-America Next Gameday list at 6ft, 175lbs, has been working well at wide receiver all week. While we’re not willing to rule out two-way identity, it’s clearly more comfortable to work on offense.
“Athlete, but mostly wide receiver,” he said of a position projection from Colorado. “I’ve worked at wide receiver my whole life.”
Between the upcoming visit and enrollment later this year, Hopkins has big development plans. After that, it’s about helping his college program do what he played a vital role at Thomas County Central.
“Rebuild the program and I want to be a part of it,” Hopkins said. “Because it wasn’t good in high school until my senior year. We have rebuilt this program.
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