The No. 1 is not a jersey that can be worn by just anyone, in the eyes of Colorado head coach Deion Sanders.

It has to be earned.

So far this season, LaJohntay Wester has proven worthy, and it’s just a matter of time before he makes the switch to his coveted number.

Wester has been one of several star receivers for the No. 18-ranked Buffaloes (7-2, 5-1 Big 12; No. 17 in CFP rankings), who will host Utah (4-5, 1-5) on Saturday at Folsom Field (10 a.m., Fox).

In his first season at CU, Wester, while wearing No. 10, has caught 45 passes for 583 yards and eight touchdowns. Following CU’s 34-23 win against Cincinnati on Oct. 26, Sanders announced to the team that Wester had earned the No. 1.

“It’s a blessing,” said Wester, a transfer from Florida Atlantic. “It’s a number that I cherish and that I’ve been wearing pretty much all of my career. So to be able to come to a new school and earn it the right way, it’s a blessing.”

Wester hasn’t made the switch yet, however, because he said he’s “got to handle some academic things.”

“It’s just some academic things that I have to handle, and then Coach Prime is gonna let me be able to wear it, hopefully, Lord willing, this Saturday,” he said.

Wester wore No. 1 for FAU last year, when he finished second in the country with 108 receptions (for 1,168 yards and eight TDs).

Based on production alone, Wester has been worthy of wearing No. 1, but he’s meant more than that to CU. He’s also been a vocal leader in a receiver room that includes fellow stars Travis Hunter, Jimmy Horn Jr. and Will Sheppard.

“He’s going to be the one to get us going, hype us up and all that,” Sheppard said. “And obviously his play on the field reflects what he does outside.”

Shortly after arriving at CU in January, though, Wester wasn’t using his voice as much and Coach Prime called him on it.

“Coach Prime when I first got here, he pulled me to his office after, like, the first week, and he was just like, ‘I know you’re trying to feel yourself through the program, through the organization and everything like that,’” Wester said. “But he was like, ‘I brought you here to be the leader in our receiver room. I need you to step up and be that leader with your experience and background.’ So that’s something that I’ve been working on, just being more vocal for the young guys and for the older guys as well.”

Wester has often been the go-to receiver for quarterback Shedeur Sanders, especially when Hunter was hobbled for a couple of games earlier this season.

It is a receiver room, however, that is loaded with not only talent, but experience.

Hunter, considered by many as the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy because of his stardom on offense and defense, has caught 69 passes for 856 yards and nine TDs.

Sheppard has caught 35 passes for 469 yards and four touchdowns, and Horn has caught 33 passes for 434 yards and a touchdown. Drelon Miller and Terrell Timmons are getting into the mix, as well. Prior to his season-ending injury, Omarion Miller was playing well.

Saturday’s game will be a challenge because the Utes have one of the best pass defenses in the country, allowing just 175.0 yards per game (18th nationally) and a 107.06 QB rating (eighth) to the opposition. Utah (49.4%) and Notre Dame (47.8%) are the only teams in the country that have held opponents to a completion percentage under 50%.

Wester and the Buffs have supreme belief in their passing attack, though.

“Our confidence (in the receiver room) is sky-high right now,” he said. “I know everybody has pretty much got in the end zone now. We all know each other’s potential, and we just go out and stand on that business.

“We’re up for the challenge (against Utah). They gotta play to our standard; we’re not gonna play to theirs.”