In 60 minutes of game time, Colorado coach Deion Sanders has transformed the Buffaloes into one of the biggest stories in American sports.
On Saturday, Colorado topped then-No. 17 TCU 45–42 in Fort Worth, Texas. The unlikely circumstances of the win—the Buffaloes went 1–11 last season while the Horned Frogs won the Fiesta Bowl and played for the national title—shocked the nation, and writers responded by voting Colorado into this week’s AP Top 25 at No. 22.
Sanders’s sudden success has many wondering what his contract looks like, given that a program-altering figure might be roaming the sidelines at Folsom Field.
Forde: Colorado Ready to Erupt for Deion Sanders’s Home Opener vs. Hated Rival Nebraska
In Dec. 2022, the Buffaloes inked Sanders to a five-year contract worth $29.5 million. As reported by BuffZone and Boulder Daily Camera writer Brian Howell at the time, Sanders’s buyout is set up thusly: “Sanders would owe [Colorado] $15 million if he leaves in the first year, $10 million if he leaves in the 2nd year, $8 million in the third year and $5 million if he leaves after that. If Colorado fires Sanders at any point without cause, the school would owe him 75% of his remaining contract.”
Sanders would owe CU $15M if he leaves in the first year, $10M if he leaves in the 2nd year, $8M in the third year and $5M if he leaves after that. If Colorado fires Sanders at any point without cause, the school would owe him 75% of his remaining contract. #cubuffs
— Brian Howell (@BrianHowell33) December 4, 2022
Whether Colorado will continue winning like it did Saturday is an open question, given its difficult 2023 schedule and forthcoming return to the Big 12 in 2024. However, any team with an interest in luring away Sanders will have its work cut out for it.
