Shannon Sharpe Fired Up For Deion Sanders' Colorado Buffaloes

Shannon Sharpe tells TMZ Sports he's absolutely fired up for Deion Sanders and his Buffaloes, saying he hasn't seen something more popular in Colorado since weed was legalized there!!!

We got the NFL legend out at LAX just days after Coach Prime's squad shocked TCU ... and he told us he's pumped to see what's going down in the state he called home for more than a decade during his playing days.

"I haven't heard people talk about Colorado so much since weed was legalized," the 55-year-old said.

"I'm excited for him, I'm excited for the program," Sharpe continued. "Obviously, everybody knows I spent 12 years in Colorado so I'm excited for Time and what he's bringing to the table."

Sharpe and Deion have a long history together ... they battled on NFL fields for years -- and in retirement, they've become super close. In fact, this past offseason, the two sat down together for a podcast ... where they exchanged plenty of jokes and laughs.

All that being said, though, Sharpe still isn't sure the Buffs are quite ready to be considered a national championship contender just yet.

"I think they're a couple of years away from that," he said, "but I'm excited for what they're doing right now."