The Colorado Buffaloes and head coach Deion Sanders, who started this past season 3-0 but ultimately went 4-8 after a 1-8 skid, are looking to overhaul their defense in part by hiring Robert Livingston from the NFL.
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"Bengals secondary coach Robert Livingston is in Colorado today speaking with Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders, and he's expected to be named their new defensive coordinator," NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports. "A Lou Anarumo [disciple], he's an impressive young coach."
Livingston, most recently a safeties coach with the Cincinnati Bengals, has agreed to become the next defensive coordinator for the Buffaloes and head coach Deion Sanders.
Last season, the Buffaloes allowed 34.8 points (119th), 176.4 rushing yards (102nd) and 276.9 passing yards (126th) per game. Their defense was unable to stop any opposing offense. Livingston replaces Charles Kelly, who's now with the Auburn Tigers as co-defensive coordinator.
The Buffaloes' four wins were:
- 45-42 over TCU.
- 36-14 over Nebraska.
- 43-35 in overtime against Colorado State.
- 27-24 over Arizona State on the road.
Including Week 1, they allowed 40-plus points in five games and 30-plus points in seven.
Livingston had been with the Bengals since 2012 and moved into an assistant coaching role in 2015. Before joining the Bengals, he had roles with Vanderbilt and Furman.
He played safety at William & Mary in the late 2000s.
Now, he'll coach up two-way superstar Travis Hunter and one of Deion Sanders' sons, safety Shilo Sanders.
The hiring of Livingston is just one of the coaching staff changes "Coach Prime" has made.
Sanders demoted offensive coordinator Sean Lewis and named Pat Shurmur to that role. He also hired former NFL offensive lineman Phil Loadholt to be the offensive line coach.
The Buffaloes will look to build off their 4-8 2023 campaign, which was an improvement over their 1-11 record in 2022 before Sanders' arrival.
We'll see how Livingston can overhaul the Buffaloes' safeties group and perhaps elevate Shilo Sanders to a higher level of play.
The Buffaloes' season kicks off on Aug. 31 against North Dakota State. Their Black & Gold Spring Game will be on April 27.
