Prime Time has come to Bounder, Colorado.
The University of Colorado announced Saturday night Deion Sanders will be the Buffaloes’ 28th head football coach. Terms were not announced but the multi-year deal is expected to pay Sanders around $4.5 million to coach at the Pac-12 school.
“There were a number of highly qualified and impressive candidates interested in becoming the next head football coach at Colorado, but none of them had the pedigree, the knowledge and the ability to connect with student-athletes like Deion Sanders,” Athletic Director Rick George said. “Not only will Coach Prime energize our fanbase, I’m confident that he will lead our program back to national prominence while leading a team of high quality and high character.”
The announcement came hours after Sanders coached Jackson State to victory over Southern in the SWAC Championship Game.
The victory was the 12th against 0 losses for Jackson State, which will play North Carolina Central in the Celebration Bowl on December 17.
Sanders, who is 27-5 at Jackson State told those players that he will coach the Celebration Bowl.
The celebration in Boulder has to be for bringing on the Pro Football Hall of Famer to a program that won one game — in overtime, no less — in 2022.
Karl Dorrell was fired after an 0-5 start and Mike Sanford finished the season as interim coach, going 1-6.
What will be fascinating is how many Jackson State players Sanders brings with him to Boulder via the transfer portal.
His son, Shedeur, threw 4 touchdown passes in the win over Southern.
“Deion Sanders’ stature transcends sports, and his hiring elevates not only the football program but the university as a whole,” CU Boulder Chancellor Philip DiStefano said. “I’m thankful Deion has chosen to join our Buffalo family and I applaud Rick George for a truly inspired choice. This is an exciting new chapter in the long, storied history of Colorado football and I look forward to standing shoulder-to-shoulder with our students, supporters and fans to cheer on “Coach Prime” and our student-athletes next fall.”
The University of Colorado’s academic standards has created issues for previous coaches when it comes to accepting transfers.
The Denver Post addressed possible changes at the school when it came to accepting such players.
Several sources have told The Post that CU will be modifying its policies regarding transfer credits to make it easier to recruit players from the transfer portal, addressing an issue that has been a sticking point for current and former Buffs football coaches.
Under current university academic requirements, not every credit from every system carries over once the student-athlete is accepted in Boulder. This sometimes makes new student-athletes ineligible immediately and in academic limbo until the credits can be made up.
