The Colorado Buffaloes football team held spring practice Monday while mourning the death of backup quarterback Dominiq Ponder, who died in a single-car crash early Sunday at age 23. Coach Deion Sanders gave players the option to skip practice, but the team unanimously decided to take the field together, believing it was what Ponder would have wanted.

Ponder was driving a 2023 Tesla when he lost control on a curve, hit a guardrail, struck an electrical pole, and rolled down an embankment in Boulder County. Police said speed was suspected as a factor. Players learned of his death throughout Sunday, with some finding out after church and others later in the day. Offensive coordinator Brennan Marion received the news from Ponder's father while playing with his own son.

The practice served as both a memorial and a team-building exercise. Players broke huddles chanting "Dom" and worked with a different urgency, coaching each other like family rather than demanding perfection. Teammates remembered Ponder as a leader who arrived at the quarterback room before sunrise and once jumped a 10-foot fence to help a rehabbing teammate access a hot tub. The Buffaloes dedicated their season to Ponder's memory, vowing to play with the same relentless energy he brought to every practice.