Prized 2025 Penn State commit flips to Coach Prime and Colorado after overtime win

When building his rosters out in Boulder, Colorado head coach Deion Sanders primarily uses the transfer portal. However, this weekend he landed his eighth high school commitment in the 2025 recruiting class, flipping four-star defensive back Antonio Branch Jr. from his commitment to Penn State. 

Branch went out to Boulder this past weekend for his official visit which was good timing for Coach Prime. Colorado pulled off a miraculous comeback win over Baylor, converting on a hail mary to send the game to overtime and winning it when star two-way player Travis Hunter forced a fumble on the goalline. 

Hunter’s play sent Folsom Field into a frenzy with the fans storming the field before the play was confirmed by replay. It was a bit of an overreaction for a win over a Baylor team that went 3-9 last season, even for a fanbase as beaten down as Colorado’s. However, it would have been an exciting moment for a recruit to witness, and if you pair that with the excitement of Deion Sanders, it’s easy to understand why Branch had a change of heart. 

When Hunter was the top defensive back recruit in the country, he decided to play for Sanders at HBCU Jackson State, then followed his head coach to Boulder. It seems that the allure of playing for arguably the best defensive back in football history attracted Branch too. 

With the loss of Branch, James Franklin’s 2025 group is down to just 24 commits but is still very strong in the secondary. Four-star cornerback Daryus Dixson is the top recruit in the class and cornerback Jahmir Joseph is another of the eight four-stars who have announced their intentions to head to Happy Valley next year.