Colorado has added some more depth and experience to its front line on defense.
On Monday, defensive lineman Santana Hopper from Tulane and defensive ends Toby Anene of North Dakota State and Immanuel Ezeogu of James Madison announced their commitments to CU and head coach Deion Sanders.
CU has added 12 transfers since Saturday, with seven of them being edge defenders or defensive linemen.
Hopper, who has one year of eligibility remaining, was first-team All-AAC for conference champion Tulane, which played in the College Football Playoffs. Listed at 6-foot-2, 265 pounds, Hopper recorded 31 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks for the Green Wave this season.
Prior to this year, he played three seasons at Appalachian State and was first-team All-Sun Belt in 2024. According to Pro Football Focus, he was the highest-graded defensive lineman in the Sun Belt in 2024 and posted 36 tackles, 8.5 TFLs, five sacks and 20 QB pressures.
After redshirting in 2022, Hopper was second-team freshman All-American by College Football News in 2023, recording 34 tackles, 7.5 TFLS and 3.5 sacks, along with 19 pressures.
Anene, listed at 6-4, 259 pounds, was second-team All-Missouri Valley Conference this season for North Dakota State.
Anene had a team-high seven sacks, along with 27 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, six pass breakups and five QB hurries for the Bison, who went 12-1. He had 29 tackles, 5.5 TFLs and 3.5 sacks in 2024. He comes to CU with one year of eligibility.
The 6-1, 239-pound Ezeogu was a backup edge defender at JMU, which went 12-2 and reached the College Football Playoffs. He recorded 15 tackles, four TFLs and a sack for the Dukes. He will have three years of eligibility remaining.
This week, the Buffs have also added edge rushers Balansama Kamara (Albany), Lamont Lester Jr. (Monmouth) and Yamil Talib (Charlotte), as well as defensive lineman Dylan Manuel (Appalachian State).
