Deion Sanders agrees to become next head football coach at Colorado

Jackson State head coach Deion Sanders will be moving on from the Tigers and taking the same job at Colorado. The news came via On3’s Hayes Fawcett on Saturday night following Jackson State’s 43-24 victory in the SWAC Championship game over Southern.

“Coach Deion “Prime” Sanders has officially announced he will be the next head coach at Colorado,” wrote Fawcett on Twitter. “Coach Prime went 27-5 in his head coaching tenure at Jackson St. and landed some of the nation’s top recruits. Has already begun recruiting staff and players to Colorado.”

Colorado officially announced the news shortly after reports broke of his Sanders’ hiring:

“Deion Sanders, known as “Prime Time” during his Hall of Fame playing career and has since transitioned into “Coach Prime,” has been named the 28th full-time head football coach at the University of Colorado, athletic director Rick George announced Saturday evening.”

BREAKING: Coach Deion “Prime” Sanders has officially announced he will be the next head coach at Colorado.

Coach Prime went 27-5 in his head coaching tenure at Jackson St. and landed some of the nation’s top recruits.

Has already begun recruiting staff and players to Colorado. pic.twitter.com/eXK2wY7xUI

— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) December 4, 2022

Athletic director Rick George released the following statement on Sanders with the announcement:

“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,” 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.”

This news comes after Deion Sanders previously confirmed that Colorado has offered him the job. However, there were reports that the Buffaloes weren’t the only team in on Sanders.

In three seasons at Jackson State, Sanders led the Tigers to a 27-5 record. That includes two conference championship seasons and appearances in the Celebration Bowl.

Deion Sanders landed at Jackson State in 2020, with his previous coaching experience coming at the high school level. He quickly turned Jackson State into a juggernaut among HBCU schools, largely through his ability to recruit.

The biggest name recruit that he was able to land while at Jackson State was Travis Hunter. A five-star recruit and the No. 2 overall prospect in the Class of 2022, Deion Sanders was able to flip him from Florida State.

Now, Sanders takes over a Colorado program in need of a major rebuild. Outside of the 2020 season, which was shortened due to the pandemic, the Buffaloes haven’t had a winning season since 2016.

This season, Colorado went 4-8 overall and 3-6 against Pac-12 opponents. Previous Buffaloes head coach Karl Dorrell was fired after the season. In two years at the helm of Colorado’s program, Dorrell had a record of 8-10 overall, which included a 6-7 mark in Pac-12 play.