Deion Sanders experiment has run its course, Buffs should make a change

It’s time for the CU Buffs to move on from head coach Deion Sanders.

It’s been a fun few years, but this experiment has run its course.

Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter aren’t walking through that door, and let’s call it like is, Colorado is bad at football right now.

They were embarrassed on Saturday night in Utah, down 43-0 at halftime in one of the least competitive 30 minutes you’ll ever see. Hardly anyone watched the second half, and rightfully so, because that was a giant waste of time.

On the season CU has three wins. With all due respect to Delaware and Wyoming, those were layups. Storming the field after upsetting Iowa State was fun, but it shouldn’t save jobs.

Does Colorado AD Rick George like attention or winning football? Because in three seasons with Deion Sanders leading the program, the Buffs have been absolutely average. They’re 16-17 under Coach Prime’s guidance. They went 4-8 in 2023 and are steamrolling toward another similar mark this season. In conference games, CU is a miserable 9-14.

Having a celebrity coaching staff doesn’t translate to victories. Warren Sapp, Marshall Faulk and others might have been great players, but clearly coaching isn’t their strength.

Deion Sanders is a tough dude, a warrior as he battles ongoing health problems, but he should be enjoying his weekends watching Shedeur and Travis play in the NFL. These current Buffs are simply outmatched without two of the greatest players Colorado has even seen in black and gold.

The problem? George likely won’t fire Sanders, because universities like revenue, and Coach Prime is great at generating it. The Buffs will continue to be on national TV every week because their leader is mega-famous. Network executives don’t care that the play is poor, they care about eyeballs.

SEC schools wouldn’t put up with this product. Look what just happened to Brian Kelly at LSU. If CU is serious about potentially being in the College Football Playoff in the coming years, they’d do the same. Firing coaches isn’t fun, but sometimes it’s necessary.

At the end of the day, Deion Sanders has put Colorado back on the map and that’s great. But for all the hype around the program, the results on the field haven’t translated. Clearly the recruiting isn’t good enough, because top-tier teams would never be down by 43 points at halftime to a “rival.”

Can you imagine if what happened on Saturday went down at Alabama, Georgia or Ohio State? The coach might not be allowed on the plane home. At CU, it gets lost in the shuffle, because oh boy it’s fun to be on ESPN and fill Folsom Field with fans every weekend.

That’s not good enough. We can’t treat this program like acknowledgement of its existence is more important than playing winning football. Again, people who care deeply are more worried about victories than headlines. The headlines have been exciting, but there’s only so many that can fuel a fanbase.

Deion Sanders is a good man. He clearly means well, but his “Louis” hasn’t produced. It looks like the fake stuff someone would buy on vacation and tell their friends they got the real deal.

CU Buffs fans have been patient through two bad seasons under Coach Prime. Rick George can’t let a third one in four years happen again in 2026. A big move needs to happen — we’ll just have to see if the AD is willing to do it.

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