‘The Promise of What Deion Sanders Could’ve Been is Over’ — Ex-ESPN Analyst Makes It Clear Coach Prime’s Colorado Stint Is Done
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The Colorado Buffaloes have been on a bit of a roller-coaster journey through three weeks of the 2026 college football season. Deion Sanders’ team started the year with momentum, stringing together a 2–0 opening run before hitting a massive wall in Week 3, suffering an ugly 41–7 blowout loss to Northwestern.
For many observers, the heavy loss was a speed bump. But for former ESPN analyst Bomani Jones, it was the final signature on a failed experiment.
Bomani Jones Delivers Harsh Assessment of Deion Sanders’ Colorado Tenure
When Sanders officially accepted the head-coaching position at Colorado before the 2023 season, the Buffaloes were coming off a disastrous 1-11 campaign in 2022. To turn that around, the program placed much of its hope in Sanders, prising him away from Jackson State.
However, Sanders’ arrival has yet to consistently produce the level of success and sustained contention that was expected. During the latest episode of his “The Right Time with Bomani Jones” show, Jones offered a blunt assessment of the current state of the program.
“So this Colorado thing is over,” Jones said. “The promise of what Deion Sanders could have been is over. The comparative advantage that you would have because Deion Sanders is your coach no longer matters. Colorado doesn’t have the money. And Deion sounded this alarm early.”
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Jones then pointed toward Sanders’ accomplishments beyond football to share how seriously the Colorado head coach has approached competition throughout his career. He then questioned if it was even possible for Sanders’ distinctive approach to be communicated to the players in his program.
“The way that he positions himself before people is different than the other coaches do. He’s certainly allowed to be different in how he does it. But I do wonder, to a degree, what exactly does this signal to the people that are under your employ? What exactly does this signal to the people that you coach?”
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In his first season as head coach, Coach Prime watched the Buffaloes finish with a disappointing 4-8 record. Colorado responded with a notable turnaround in 2024, finishing the season with a 9-4 record and giving supporters renewed optimism that Sanders could eventually transform the program into a consistent contender.
However, with key players Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter leaving for the NFL, Colorado struggled to replicate its previous level of production in 2025, ultimately finishing the season with a disappointing 3-9 record.
Following their Week 3 loss, the Buffaloes have just a 0.9% chance of making the 12-team playoff, according to PFN’s College Football Playoff Meter.
Nevertheless, Sanders and the Buffaloes will have an opportunity to respond and get a notch in the win column in Week 4 when they face the Baylor Bears.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.
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