Preston Ashley caused some concern in the hallways of Brandon (Mississippi) High School one day in March.
A star football player for the Brandon Bulldogs, Ashley had just been pulled out of class to take a phone call from the University of Colorado, which offered him a football scholarship.
“When I got told I had the offer, I just remember screaming down the middle of the hallway and teachers opening their doors like, ‘Is everything okay?’” Ashley said. “I was just so excited and so blessed to have an opportunity to play for someone that I looked up since a little kid, all my life.”
On Wednesday, the first day of the early signing period, Ashley will sign his financial aid agreement to play for CU and head coach Deion Sanders. He is one 10 players currently committed to the Buffs for the 2026 class.
“It just really came down to what place fit me,” said Ashley, a defensive back who has a four-star rating by 247Sports.com. “There was so many good schools that recruited me. My parents and I really sat down and prayed and God really gave us the answer that Colorado was home.”
CU, which wrapped up a 3-9 season (1-8 Big 12) last Saturday, has lost three commits in recent weeks and its class is ranked 107th nationally by 247Sports (15th in the Big 12).
Much of that ranking has to do with the low number of commits, but the quality of players in CU’s class is solid. The average player rating for the Buffs’ commits is 87.71, which ranks seventh in the Big 12.
Ashley, a safety who is projected to play nickel back for the Buffs, is one of the headliners, as one of two four-star prospects – along with linebacker Carson Crawford (Carthage, Texas), who will room with Ashley at CU.
And, Ashley, who will enroll at CU in January, might be one of the most loyal Buffs already.
“A lot of people down here, since living in SEC country, were like, ‘Man, did you see Colorado’s record? This, that, this, that,’” Ashley said. “I said, ‘Man, I bleed Black and Gold.’ Like, if I could get a tattoo of a buffalo on my face right now, I would. It’s Colorado, and that’s just me. I feel like especially after signing Wednesday, it’s gonna be a part of my life as it already is right now.”
Ashley said Sanders – a Pro Football Hall of Famer and arguably the best cornerback in the history of the game – is a childhood hero and Ashley knew he couldn’t turn down an opportunity to play for him.
Still, he wanted to confirm that Boulder was the right place for him by visiting in June.
“Thank God it was,” he said. “I told my mom and dad and I started crying, I was like, ‘This is where I want to spend my college career at.’ … Boulder is just such a great place and I felt it fit me so well.”
Awed by the mountains and scenery, as well as Sanders and the staff when he visited in June, Ashley said his second visit in October reaffirmed his choice. He was at Folsom Field for the Buffs’ 24-17 upset of then-No. 22 Iowa State.
“I love the fans so much. I love the stadium,” he said. “It just gives me just a vibe of this is the place to be. … Every time I talk about Boulder it’s hard not to keep a smile on my face cause I’m blown away every time.”
As a competitor, Ashley said CU’s struggles this season – the Buffs lost their last five after beating Iowa State – didn’t change his mind about coming to CU. In fact, it motivated him more.
“My thing was, we have a tough time, but that’s life,” Ashley said. “Life is gonna throw rocks and stones at you. You just gotta maneuver and twist and turn, bend backwards to do everything that you can do to get it done.”
CU had a talented freshman class this year, including five-star quarterback Julian Lewis. Ashley believes his class can join the young group in Boulder to build something special.
“We’re trying to make a dynasty up there,” he said. “Because I don’t want when people hear ‘Colorado,’ be like, ‘Ugh, that team?’ I want people be like, ‘Oh, I want to go to Colorado because Preston Ashley paved the way up there so I can be a great DB.’
“I mean, the sky’s the limit for us. … That’s our mentality with everything that we go in every day when we go to the facility, because we have a job and that’s to win and ball out at all costs.”