People say I’m way too critical of Deion Sanders, and they are probably right. That being said, here are five things he’s done amazingly well at Colorado so far…
1. Get the Buffs to the Big 12
— Maybe Colorado would have survived conference realignment and not be left out like Oregon State and Washington State but we will never know. What we do know is that Colorado became target No. 1 for the Big 12 because of Prime, and that’s worth revenue for years and years for the program. More on revenue below.
2. Gain national attention
— Everyone is talking about Colorado, whether it’s good or bad. Before Deion? Crickets. The program was known for losing a coach with a losing record to Michigan State and a rare run in the PAC 12 every decade or so. Now, we can’t stop talking about them.
3. Draw in revenue
— The estimations differ, but you can assume he’s brought in between $250 and $300 million in revenue based on USA Today. From merch to ticket sales to social media attention and sponsorships, Colorado is a completely different money maker than they’ve ever been before. And that doesn’t even include future enrollment increases. Most of this revenue is generated from No. 2, the attention he’s brought.
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4. Revitalize the fan base
— Colorado fans were quiet yet loyal but didn’t have much to cheer about. While some true fans might be a bit confused about how to enjoy this newfound attention and how it’s gained, CU has a legion of new fans simply because of Deion. That might not last, but at least for the diehards, they are feeling alive after most seasons of pure misery.
5. A competitive team
— Colorado was 1-11 before Deion arrived and lost most games but multiple touchdowns. While wins have been hard to come by, the 4-8 season at least has competitive losses to some very good programs. Aside from the Oregon and Washington State games, they were able to hang, which is something they couldn’t do before.
