How Colorado's Offensive Struggles Have Placed Deion Sanders on the Hot Seat
The Colorado Buffaloes have benefitted from the addition of Deion Sanders as the head coach of their football program financially more than in the win column.
In the 3.5 years with the program, Sanders has sported a sub-.500 winning percentage and an 18-24 overall record since his hiring in 2023.
According to USA Today, the Hall of Famer has made the University of Colorado upwards of $280 million dollars, since 2023. That number is ‘conservative,’ according to the article, and includes profits from ticket sales, increases in donations and what they estimate the total revenue from media coverage has been since he joined Colorado.
That has not been enough for the fans of Colorado football, though, as the consensus from analysts and fans alike is that the expectations have not been met.
Sanders’ only winning season came alongside cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter’s Heisman-winning season. He was then drafted No. 2 overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars. Sanders’ son, Shedeur Sanders, was the quarterback of that team. He has since gone on to make an NFL Pro Bowl.
Another concern for the Buffaloes under Sanders has been their roulette of offensive coordinators. Sean Lewis was fired after Sanders’ inaugural season in Boulder. Colorado went 4-8 with a winning percentage of just over 10% in conference play during that campaign.
A big improvement came in the next season under Pat Shurmur, a coordinator with 23 seasons of NFL experience in his repertoire. Colorado went 9-4 and inevitably lost in the Alamo Bowl to the BYU Cougars. That team went 7-2 in conference play and averaged just over 380 yards of offense per game. That team finished No. 25 in the final AP poll of 2024.
In the following season, Colorado’s offensive performance drastically declined after the deprivation of NFL talent left for the draft. In the second season under Shurmur, the program had a final record of 3-9 and only scored 20 points per game while allowing just over 30. This pushed Sanders to let Shurmur go during the offseason.
He then brought in former Sacramento State Hornets head coach Brennan Marion and the ‘Go-Go’ offense. That explosive offense has been lacking effectiveness, as the Buffs have a 2-3 record through five games and are 0-2 in Big 12 conference play. The offense is averaging just over 18 points per game while only converting on 3rd down 35% of the time. This offense has been bad and has not been up to par for the Buffs’ standards under Prime.
It is impossible for returning players on offense (few who are left in this era of NIL) to adjust and execute three different offensive schemes in just over three years under Sanders. A college-level offense is hard enough to execute, but that instability only makes things harder. The expectations for Sanders at Colorado have not been met in terms of offensive or overall team success. There needs to be more consistency from top to bottom, and that starts with the coaches.
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