The pipeline from menacing D-tackle to sweetheart coach is not one traversed very often. Warren Sapp, however, seems to be breaking down conventional wisdom just as he broke down quarterback protection. The Colorado Buffaloes’ graduate assistant has thwarted a lot of negative notions surrounding him since his retirement from the NFL. Sapp has dedicated himself to nurturing young adults into great athletes and, more importantly, great people. His Christmas Day activity with one particular player is a proponent of this.

Warren Sapp fully embodied the Christmas spirit, as he seemingly spent the holiday with Buffs’ wide-receiver Jimmy Horn Jr. Horn had to deal with adversity from a young age. His father, who raised him as a single parent, is currently incarcerated on multiple drug-related charges. Without his parents to spend this special day with, Warren Sapp stepped up to the mantle for Jimmy.

In a post shared on his Instagram, Sapp posed up with Jimmy Horn Jr in the early hours of Christmas Day. Horn is rocking Buffs gear in the picture ahead of their Alamo Bowl date against BYU. “Merry Christmas🎄from @j5fleezy & Fatboy! #FloridaFinest #SkoBuffs#SappNotFishing #AlamoBowl” read the caption. As the hashtag would suggest, both are Sunshine State natives. Their bond perhaps stems from this shared geography. Just an overall awesome thing for the Colorado faithful and the wider football sphere to wake up to on this blessed day.

Although Sapp doesn’t coach Horn directly, just being in the proximity of greatness of that ilk tends to brush off. Jimmy Horn Jr., however, saw a downturn in his production this season. His senior year numbers are down across most receiving categories. This is not an indictment on Jimmy, though, and is mostly by design rather than a regression. Travis Hunter and other ancillary skill-position players have featured more prominently in Deion Sanders’ offense this season.

Over in Warren Sapp’s department of expertise, things have only trended skywards. He’s garnered widespread props for solving Colorado’s issues at the line of scrimmage. Protection for their own quarterback and getting after the opposition’s quarterback were the Buffaloes’ Achilles heel last season. Warren Sapp has positively impacted either side of the trenches. This impact is reflected in the statistical metrics and the eye test alike. He’ll hope this continues into their last outing of the season down in San Antonio.

Warren Sapp and Jimmy Horn Jr. diverge paths after this weekend

Angst over the Colorado Buffaloes’ failure to make the CFP is a fallacy. It breaks down under the slightest bit of context. Back in August, folks in Boulder would’ve snapped your hand off if you offered them bowl-eligibility. Falling short of standards that didn’t exist prior cannot be used to proverbially beat the team with a stick. Colorado’s efforts have secured them a tryst against an upbeat BYU in the Alamo Bowl. This will be the Buffs’ first Bowl game in 4 years.

Begrudgingly, it’ll mark the last game for their superstar duo of Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter. Meanwhile, another player donning the black and gold for one last time will be Jimmy Horn Jr. Similar to Warren Sapp spending time on Christmas with him in the absence of his parents, Coach Prime walked onto the field Jimmy on Senior Day as he bid farewell to the Buffs faithful.

A win in the bowl game will set a precedent for a retooled Colorado and give them momentum for 2025. With 5-star recruit Julian Lewis poised to fill their Shedeur-shaped void, the ceiling for the program remains sky-high. The culture that Deion Sanders has established and Warren Sapp is proliferating shall carry the program into this new era.