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Coach Prime’s Contract: CU’s Bid for a Seat at the Adult Table
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December 3, 2022, was a significant day in the history of Colorado football.
Coming off of a disastrous 1-11 campaign, a season in which the Buffs lost by an average of 29 points per game, CU was at a crossroads. Instead of making a safe hire of a retread head coach, CU athletic director Rick George made a bold move, and hired Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders.
March 28, 2025, might prove to be just a pivotal a date in Colorado history as December 3, 2022.
It took time – a frustratingly long three months – but the much-anticipated contract extension for Coach Prime has finally finally announced … and it is an eye-opener. On Friday, CU announced that the Board of Regents had unanimously approved a five-year, $54 million extension for Coach Prime.
The terms … Coach Prime’s base salary will increase to $10 million in 2025, up from $5.7 million in 2024. According to the contract, Sanders will earn another $10 million in 2026, $11 million in 2027, $11 million in 2028 and $12 million in 2029.
The buyout … If Sanders accepts another coaching job before the end of the contract, his buyout would start at $12 million if he leaves on or before December 31, 2025, followed by $10 million in 2026, $6 million in 2027, $4 million in 2028 and $3 million in 2029. He can retire from coaching, though, without having to pay damages to the university — as long as he doesn’t retire and then return to coaching somewhere else.
Coach Prime’s new contract puts Sanders – and Colorado – in a different stratosphere of college football.
According to the USA Today compilation of head coaches’ salaries for the 2024 season, there were a grand total of seven coaches who were paid salaries of $10 million or more last fall:
- Kirby Smart, Georgia … $13.2 million
- Dabo Swinney, Clemson … $11.1 million
- Steve Sarkisian, Texas … $10.6 million
- Lincoln Riley, USC … $10.1 million
- Ryan Day, Ohio State … $10.0 million
- Mike Norvell, Florida State … $10.0 million
- Kalen DeBoer, Alabama … $10.0 million
That’s it.
Now, it must be noted these were the salaries for the past season. Several coaches, including James Franklin at Penn State ($8.5 million in 2024) and Dan Lanning at Oregon ($8.2 million in 2024) have also joined the eight figure club this off-season … but you get the point.
Last season, the highest-paid coach in the Big 12 was Oklahoma State’s Mike Gundy, (No. 17 overall, at $7.75 million) and Gundy has taken a pay cut this off-season after a calamitous 3-9 campaign last fall. Coach Prime in 2024 was at No. 38 nationally (and fourth in the Big 12), at $5.7 million.
Regardless of the total number of head coaches in college football who are now at the $10 million level, to say that Coach Prime’s new contract is on par with the blue bloods of the college football world is not an overstatement.
“Coach Prime has revolutionized college football and in doing so, has restored CU football to our rightful place as a national power,” said Rick George in CU’s press release announcing Coach Prime’s new contract. “This extension not only recognizes Coach’s incredible accomplishments transforming our program on and off the field, it keeps him in Boulder to compete for conference and national championships in the years to come.”
Coach Prime’s statement … “I’m excited for the opportunity to continue building something special here at Colorado. We’ve just scratched the surface of what this program can be. It’s not just about football; it’s about developing young men who are ready to take on the world. I’m committed to bringing greatness to this university, on and off the field. We’ve got work to do, and I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else but here, making history with these incredible players and this passionate fan base. Lastly, anybody got at least a five-bedroom home with acreage for sale?”
Coach Prime’s joke aside, Rick George’s statement that Coach Prime has “restored CU football to our rightful place as a national power”, and Coach Prime’s statement that “We’ve just scratched the surface of what this program can be” has to have Buff fans salivating about the possibilities for the future of Colorado football.
And it’s not just the $54 million contract that Buff fans can look to as evidence of CU’s commitment to trying to position itself as a national player at the end of the decade when the next round of realignment will take place …
Coach Livingston’s extension … CU’s 9-4 record in 2024 owes a great deal to the efforts of the likes of Shedeur Sanders, Travis Hunter, and Cam’Ron Silmon-Craig, but the leadership and game-planning of defensive coordinator Robert Livingston played a significant role as well. The Buffs rose to Top 50 rankings nationally in total defense and scoring defense for the first time in a decade, and that was due in no small measure to Coach Livingston. Giving Livingston a raise and an extension – at a time when Livingston was being courted by the NFL – was a strong move by Rick George.
The installation of new turf at Folsom Field … We can debate the loss of natural grass at Folsom Field (personally, I’m not a big fan), but the move is further indication of CU’s commitment to the future. “I think putting turf down there gives us flexibility, certainly with the change in the College Football Playoff,” Rick George said. “Being a northern school, you don’t grow grass after October, and having a game in December (for the CFP) was a big part of that consideration. Plus, it gives us another field that we can practice on daily that will benefit our football program” (not to mention potentially getting more concerts at Folsom … which won’t hurt CU’s bottom line).
A Who’s Who of a coaching staff … We’ve spent a great deal of time this off-season talking about CU’s coaching staff, so I won’t belabor the point. But having two NFL Hall of Fame gold jackets, in the persons of Warren Sapp and Marshall Faulk, with the additions of former All-Pros like Andre Gurode, Byron Leftwich and Domata Peko, only enhances CU’s reputation with potential recruits and transfers.
Roster updates … If you aren’t already nauseated by every preseason pundit discounting CU’s chances in 2025 based upon the loss of Shedeur and Travis, you haven’t been paying attention. Thing is, though, that Coach Prime’s roster currently has more four star players on it than CU rosters had over the past 15 years … combined. Of course, recruiting rankings and performance don’t always go hand in hand, but I’ll take a roster filled with four-star players than two-star “diamonds in the rough” any day.
Administration commitment … The Board of Regents, despite the hefty price tag of Coach Prime’s contract, unanimously approved the deal on Friday. The absence of Jack Kroll certainly helps, but the vote is a nice statement from the administration. CU President Todd Saliman and CU Chancellor Justin Schwartz seem to understand that the football program is the “front porch” of the University, and can see the spike in applications and donations which Coach Prime has brought to CU and the Boulder community. The Buff Nation has long understood how vital the support of CU’s administration is to the future of CU athletics … and it seems CU now has administrators who “get it”.
Coach Prime’s Spring Game idea … The idea of having Syracuse come to Boulder for CU’s Spring Game on April 17th has proven logistically too difficult for 2025, but Coach Prime has the rest of the college football world talking. With Coach Prime’s extension letting the rest of the college football world know he is happy in Boulder, and has no immediate plans to move, Coach Prime can now be seen as more than a short time side show. He can now be recognized as the innovator (see: Roster building; coaching staff makeup) that he is.
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The House settlement is less than ten days from being approved by a federal judge. The repercussions – and expense to colleges and universities across the nation – are still to be determined. The settlement of the ACC lawsuits have paved the way for a grand restructuring of power conference football at the end of the decade.
There are too many moving parts right now to say what the landscape of college football will look like a few years down the road. But one thing is clear: only those programs willing to make the financial commitment to be a part of the upper echelon will survive.
The University of Colorado took a huge step back towards national relevance when it hired Coach Prime in December, 2022.
The University of Colorado took a huge step back towards national prominence on March 28, 2025.
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8 Replies to “Coach Prime’s Contract: CU’s Bid for a Seat at the Adult Table”
Regarding the poll, my first thought when I saw the dates on the buy outs was why so soon? 12/31/25 is not that far off. A lot coaching changes are happening at that time of year… And while I truly believe Primes not planning on leaving anytime soon and I believe him when he talks about loving it in Boulder and at CU.
So why not longer? A year from now is an usual time of year to make a coaching change and with only nine months to the end of the year why not have the $12 mill commitment go after the Superbowl 2026; that’s less than a year from today… Or, better yet, end of Jan 2027.
This year’s recruiting cycle is near over and there will only be a handful of new recruits joining a really good class. But extending the $12 mill buyout to finish the next recruiting cycle, and CU has a better chance at the recruits who are expecting Prime to probably be around for a full recruiting cycle/year.
That would help this year’s portal transfers to finish strong[er] AND hopefully keep Prime for a whole year of recruiting before the buyout drops; something recruits and potential suitors would take notice of.
There’s no guarantee that Prime will stay, but that schedule would slow down many who would flirt with Prime to get him on board at their school. And give a little extra security.
Buuut prime is going to do so well, that CU will be renegotiating all of this with in a few years
Where it might get interesting is if fsu fires norvell. I still think Deion stays in Boulder for a while, but who knows?
Go Buffs
The hate will be so amplified if they don’t get to 9+ wins this year. And that is hilarious. Dude is worth every penny. And just watch the roster building from here.
Go Buffs
Let them hate, man, let them hate.
Their hatred is so much more welcome than their indifference.
Totally. It’s fuel for Deion.
Go Buffs
Let’s also talk about the 24 hours boulder had. From getting the Sundance Film Festival in 2027 and beyond and then coach prime gets his extension. Boulder is now a destination college town. We always knew it was one, but now the rest of the country knows too.
When a buddy shared that news, I wondered if that played a role in going away from grass to turf. Movie night at Folsom field?
Go Buffs
I had that cross my mind too. Only hesitation is that Sundance is in late January. Not necessarily outdoor weather in Boulder. But could be worth a try.