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Colorado and coach Deion Sanders have agreed on a contract extension through the 2029 season that puts Sanders into the $10 million club as one of the 10 highest-paid coaches in college football. The five-year deal worth $54 million total will put Sanders at $10 million for 2025-26, $11 million for 2027-28 and $12 million on 2029, according to the Boulder Daily Camera.
Sanders most notably received reported interest from the Dallas Cowboys in the last coaching cycle.
"I'm excited for the opportunity to continue building something special here at Colorado," Sanders said in a statement. "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?"
Sanders enters his third year at Colorado after spending the first three seasons of his collegiate coaching career at Jackson State. The Buffaloes improved to 9-4 in 2024 -- their first winning record in a full 12-game season since 2016 -- and pushed for an appearance in the Big 12 Championship Game with a 7-2 effort in conference play.
Colorado also finished the year ranked in both major polls for the first time in eight years. Sanders is now 13-12 with the Buffaloes.
Colorado faces an interesting season
While Colorado is trending up under Sanders, 2025 could be a very interesting year for the Buffaloes. Gone are star quarterback Shedeur Sanders and Heisman Trophy-winning, do-it-all playmaker Travis Hunter. Those two deserve as much credit as anyone for Colorado's turnaround.
Sanders, Deion's son, led the Big 12 and finished fourth nationally last season with 4,134 yards through the air. He also tossed a career-high 37 touchdowns to just 10 interceptions and surpassed 250 yards passing in all but two games. Now there's a chance Sanders will be the first quarterback off the board in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Hunter could hear his name called well before Sanders, though. Hunter played both cornerback and wide receiver full-time for Colorado, and in addition to his 2024 Heisman win, became the first player in college football history to capture both the Biletnikoff Award as college football's top receiver and the Bednarik Award as the sport's top defensive player.
Colorado often went as Sanders and Hunter did, and the two leave a massive void to fill with their parting. Colorado added some quarterback talent via high school recruiting (five-star prospect Julian Lewis and the transfer portal (former Liberty QB Kaidon Salter), while Hunter's production will have to be picked up by multiple players at different positions. Such was the impact he had.
The Buffaloes also have to identify replacements for standout wide receiver Will Sheppard, top pass-rusher BJ Green II and safety Shilo Sanders, another of Deion's sons. Not that Colorado is a stranger to roster overhaul under Sanders.
Sanders is a top recruiter
There's no doubt that Sanders' magnetic personality makes him one of the most effective recruiters in college football. He was quick to capitalize on the portal when he first arrived in Boulder and overhauled the roster by welcoming a whopping 52 transfers.That included both Sanders and Hunter, and though the group had growing pains throughout a 4-8 2023 season, a solid core of players that affected Colorado's turnaround in 2024.
Sanders signed another 43 transfers ahead of the 2024 season and 17 during the 2025 winter window, highlighted by former Liberty quarterback Salter, the heir apparent to Shedeur Sanders' starting spot. The elder Sanders has not eschewed high school recruiting, either.
He made his first big splash while at Jackson State where, in 2022, he landed Hunter, the first five-star prospect to ever sign with an FCS program. In 2024 Colorado signed three top-100 prospects, including offensive lineman Jordan Seaton, who started immediately at left tackle and earned 247Sports True Freshman All-American honors.
Colorado's 2025 class, which ranked 37th nationally, was comprised of 14 recruits, six of which graded out as four-star prospects. The biggest win was Lewis, a former USC commit and the No. 10 quarterback in the 2025 class, who will compete with Salter for the vacant starting job.
Though Colorado has plenty of holes to fill in 2025, Sanders has attracted more blue-chip talent to Boulder than the program is used to seeing. That could mitigate some of the expected drop-off in production.
