He played college football at Colorado State University, where he was recognized as a consensus All-American, and won the Jim Thorpe Award.
[1] As a freshman, he was a placekicker, helping the team win a conference championship game against Brush High School.
As a junior in 1994, he received first-team All-American honors from the Football Writers Association of America, Scripps-Howard, and The Sporting News.
As a senior in 1995, he won the Jim Thorpe Award as the best defensive back in the nation, and was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American after receiving first-team selections from the Associated Press, United Press International, the Walter Camp Foundation, and The Sporting News.
[5] He earned Academic All-America honors in 1994 and 1995, and received the WAC's Stan Bates Award as the conference's best overall student athlete in 1996.
[9][10] The next year, he became the regular starter at free safety over Bo Orlando,[11] finishing second on the team with 82 tackles.
[12] In 2000, he tore his left patella tendon in the first preseason game against the Buffalo Bills and was released with an injury settlement on August 18.
He finished with 64 regular season games appearances, starting 38, while compiling 221 tackles, 4 interceptions and 4 forced fumbles.