DENVER – Friday night wasn’t quite what Shedeur Sanders had in mind.

The Colorado senior quarterback takes his practice seriously and dislikes wasting any time. However, with a few thousand fans in the stands, Sanders and the Buffaloes had to dial things down a bit.

“You’re not seeing much because we’re holding back on some of our usual plays and not using the whole field like we would normally do,” CU head coach Deion Sanders explained after a practice at All-City Stadium. “Shedeur got a bit frustrated because he wanted to try out a few more things, but we had to keep it simple in front of such a big crowd.”

The chance for Sanders and the Buffs to really cut loose is just around the corner, with the season opener against North Dakota State on Aug. 29 (6 p.m., ESPN) coming up soon.

Friday night’s practice was about adjusting to a new setting. After nearly three weeks of closed practices on campus in Boulder, CU took a trip to the home field of Denver Public Schools at Denver South High School.

All 5,000 free passes were taken, though only about 3,500 to 4,000 fans showed up. It wasn’t a full house, but it was a solid turnout for an event that was only announced a week earlier.

“This is fantastic for the university and for the players,” Coach Prime said.

This might be the first time CU has held a preseason practice off campus. Coach Prime wanted to shake things up a bit.

“Camp can get a bit monotonous,” he said. “We wanted to bring some excitement to help the team push through. I think they did a great job. I’m proud of them.”

Coach Prime noted that there were no injuries during the practice. Star cornerback/receiver Travis Hunter was absent, but not due to injury.

“Travis is fine,” Coach Prime said. “We just wanted to give him a break. He’s excited for the first game and can’t wait to see the crowd.”

Asked if the event reminded him of his own high school days, Coach Prime chuckled. He said All-City Stadium, with its artificial turf and 5,000 seats, was far better than his own high school field.

“We had a grass field and just one side of the bleachers,” he said. “This is probably what a state championship game would have looked like for me, but I never made it that far.”

“But I’m glad we came to the community,” he added. “The fan support everywhere is amazing, and we wanted to show some love to this part of the city as well.”