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It was easy to accuse the University of Colorado of engaging in the college football equivalent of “stunt casting” when it hired Deion Sanders to helm the Buffaloes. Coach Prime may have posted an impressive record at Jackson State, but whether or not that success will translate to a P5 conference is still very up in the air (with that said, the team really doesn’t have anywhere to go but up following a dismal 1-11 season).
It’s obvious Colorado was trying to make a splash with the fairly bold strategy that has at least initially appeared to pay off. It’s impossible to deny the immediate impact Sanders has had, as the school not only scored a major win by simply getting people to care about its football team for the first time in years but has seen a huge spike in interest from the hundreds of players and recruits who’ve reportedly expressed interest in taking their talents to Boulder (which has forced the university to scramble a bit).
It would also appear Sanders is a very welcome addition for a Pac-12 conference that currently needs all of the help it can get after finding itself on life support earlier this year when USC and UCLA shockingly defected to the Big 10. The loss of those two programs put a serious hitch in the Pac-12’s attempts to secure the media deal it feels it deserves—and it appears Colorado’s new head coach could be an incredibly valuable asset.
On Wednesday, Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff addressed the ongoing search for an official broadcast partner. He implied its inability to come to terms with ESPN and Fox Sports earlier this year could be a blessing in disguise, as Kliavkoff made it very clear the conference has plans to leverage Sanders in negotiations for a new contract.
News: George Kliavkoff says new media rights deal has been held up not only bc of UC regents but hiring of Deion Sanders. "Why would we do a media deal before that? He absolutely adds value to the league."
Amazing the hiring of a coach would impact what could be a 10-figure deal.— Dennis Dodd (@dennisdoddcbs) December 8, 2022
There’s no telling if its prospective media partners will see the same kind of value in Sanders; the long-term nature of most media deals makes it hard to believe a flashy hire who hasn’t coached a single game for his new team would be as big of a bargaining chip as the commish suggests.
However, much like Colorado really had nothing to lose by hiring Sanders, the Pac-12 is in a place where there are no major downsides to shooting its shot.