​Colorado football coach Deion Sanders has brought two more former NFL players onto his coaching staff, adding to a group that has seen several high-profile departures since last year. Pierson Prioleau, a former NFL safety, and Xavier Adibi, a former NFL linebacker, have joined the Buffaloes as defensive quality control analysts, a move confirmed through documents obtained by USA TODAY Sports. Both men are alumni of Virginia Tech and are reuniting with Virginia Tech’s former defensive coordinator, Chris Marve, who now serves as Colorado’s defensive coordinator.
Prioleau, 48, who earned a Super Bowl ring with the New Orleans Saints for the 2009 season, will be paid $100,000 annually as part of his employment offer. Adibi, who was a fourth-round pick by the Houston Texans in 2008, is set to make $85,000 per year according to his offer. The confirmations come after reports of Adibi’s hiring previously circulated, but the school had not officially verified the agreement until now.
Sanders has repeatedly praised the current staff as he continues to rebuild the Colorado program after a difficult 3-9 season. At the Big 12 Conference media days in Texas on July 7, Sanders declared, “This is the best coaching staff I’ve had,” underscoring the changes and additions that have reshaped the Buffs’ backroom leadership.
Prioleau previously served as Virginia Tech’s safeties coach under Marve in 2024, tying his experience to the Hokies’ defensive framework. Adibi, 41, spent 2024 as Virginia Tech’s associate linebackers coach before Marve’s firing at the end of the regular season, a season in which the Hokies went 6-6. Marve himself had been promoted earlier that year from linebackers coach to Colorado’s defensive coordinator in February after the departure of former linebackers coach Robert Livingston to the Denver Broncos.
Colorado’s coaching staff has also seen changes on the offensive side, with Brennan Marion taking over as offensive coordinator, succeeding Pat Shurmur, a former NFL head coach. The turnover is part of Sanders’ broader effort to reshape a program that has struggled to find consistency in recent seasons.
The Buffs’ roster and coaching roster shifts also included the departure of Marshall Faulk, a Pro Football Hall of Famer, who left in December to become head coach at Southern after serving one season as running backs coach. Warren Sapp, another Pro Football Hall of Famer, also exited Colorado’s staff after two seasons.
Additionally, Vonn Bell, a former NFL and Ohio State safety, joined the Colorado staff in January under former staffer Robert Livingston, who had coached Bell during his time with the Cincinnati Bengals. Bell’s January employment offer listed a $100,000 annual salary for his role as a quality control analyst, with responsibilities including safeties coaching as Colorado prepared for its season opener.
Colorado’s 2024 season was a catalyst for the current staffing overhaul, and the Buffs are now preparing for their first game of the season on September 3 against Georgia Tech. With Prioleau and Adibi joining as defensive quality control analysts and Marve guiding the defense, Sanders aims to strengthen the Buffs’ defensive depth and overall performance as they compete in the revamped landscape of college football.