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BOULDER — Deion Sanders couldn’t decide which patch to put on Arden Walker’s jersey.

The Colorado coach doesn’t like to name specific captains, and no Buffaloes player wears the letter “C” on their jerseys. But Coach Prime does have ways to distinguish the top players on his roster. A few players wear the letter “L” for leaders and others wear the letter “D” for dawgs.

To Sanders, Walker is both.

“He’s earned that,” Coach Prime said before the start of the season.

Unsurprisingly, there was a big ‘L” on Walker’s jersey during the season opener — the Denver native’s last in college football. But on the other side of his chest was another patch that means more to him than anyone else on the Buffs roster. It’s the one that says “Mac 82-94” in honor of the late Bill McCartney, the Hall of Fame CU coach and winningest in program history who died earlier this year.

“Even though he’s gone, he’s still here in terms of just the spirit and culture of the team,” Walker said.

It’s not just because Walker grew up in Colorado and starred at Cherry Creek for another legendary Buff in Dave Logan, he’s also a legacy player as his dad, Arthur, was one of the “H-Boys” — the trio of Houston natives that included Kanavis McGhee and Alfred Williams — that played a big role on McCartney’s teams in the late 1980s and early 90s.

“I heard the Coach Mac stories growing up,” Walker said with a smile. “My dad always gave me some interesting stories and even the motivational things he said. Being able to educate my guys on just how much Coach Mac meant to the program and how much of a blessing he was… also he was a man of God like Coach Prime, so there’s some similarities (with) speaking life into players and making an impact on and off the field.”

Your daily report on everything sports in Colorado – covering the Denver Broncos, Denver Nuggets, Colorado Avalanche, and columns from Woody Paige and Paul Klee.

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