Colorado Buffaloes Sign Highly Recruited 4-Star Running Back Ashaad Clayton

BOULDER, Colo. (CBS4)- The Colorado Buffaloes completed their 2020 football recruiting class on Wednesday with the signing of four-star tailback Ashaad Clayton. Clayton, from Warren Easton High School in New Orleans, has a .9284 rating on 247Sports which is the second-highest for a CU signee in the last eight years and the 16th in school-history since 2000.

Only offensive lineman Jake Moretti, in the 2017 class, had a higher ranking.

Clayton had 17 offers including from prominent programs like Alabama, Florida, Georgia and LSU.

At 6-0, 200 pounds, Clayton rushed for 2,264 yards and 32 touchdowns during his senior season, including 1,186 yards and 18 touchdowns in five playoff games. His elite talent has 247Sports recruiting analyst Gabe Brooks believing Clayton will play in the NFL someday.

Brooks said Clayton "shows enough wiggle and hesitation to make first defender miss and can weave for extra yards. However, at his best as a north-south hole-puncher. Runs with good initial burst when going downhill."

Clayton will wear No. 24, which was the retired number of former Buff and Supreme Court Justice Byron "Whizzer" White. White's No. 24 is one of the four numbers retired at CU.

Buffs athletic director Rick George announced three of the four retired uniform numbers will circulate back into use. The numbers include No. 24 worn by White, No. 67 worn by Joe Romig and No. 11 worn by Bobby Anderson. The only jersey that will remain retired is No. 19 worn by Rashaan Salaam, the school's only Heisman-Trophy winner.

All three numbers will still be recognized in a unique way that a handful of other schools have been doing. A special patch bearing the name and years they played for the Buffaloes will be displayed prominently on the front of the uniforms.

Colorado's Spring Game is on April 27 and their first game is on Sept. 5 against Colorado State.