Colorado Buffaloes Targeting 4-Star Quarterback Recruit Committed To Illinois

According to the 247Sports composite rankings, Clayton is the No. 43 quarterback in his class and a top-100 prospect in Florida. Some of his other notable Power Four offers include the Auburn Tigers, Iowa Hawkeyes, Miami Hurricanes and Nebraska Cornhuskers. The Big 12 Conference's Baylor Bears, Cincinnati Bearcats and UCF Knights have also offered.

Colorado's 2026 recruiting class still ranks last in the Big 12 (per 247Sports), but "Coach Prime" has some momentum following recent cornerback commits Preston Ashley and Maurice Williams. Illinois tight end Gavin Mueller and California EDGE Domata Peko Jr. represent the Buffs' other two pledges.

Illinois coach Bret Bielema owns 22 class of 2026 commits, with Clayton being the lone quarterback. The group ranks No. 5 in the Big Ten and No. 15 nationally, per 247Sports.

 "The love that they're (Illinois) showing me, the momentum swing that they've gotten, it's really impressive," Clayton told 247Sports in November. "It's just a really pro-style offense I can thrive in, that fits me and can get me developed for the pros."

It certainly won't be easy for the Buffs to flip Clayton, and Lewis' presence also complicates the situation. Regardless of who wins Colorado's starting quarterback battle this fall, all signs point to Lewis starting under center in 2026 and beyond.

Late last season, "Coach Prime" spoke on his approach to recruiting high school talent.

"Let's say we get 25 high school players. How many are gonna play that freshman year at the most? Let's say four of five. So now you got 20 guys redshirted. When you go through that spring with that 20 guys redshirted, how many are you gonna retain after that spring? How many are gonna jump in the portal on you?" Sanders said last season. "If any one of you are gonna go statistically and try to calculate this, I've already done it... Why don't I just focus on 10 (high school signees)?"