Colorado Buffaloes dangling offer of more than $5 million to lure Deion Sanders to Boulder
CBS News Colorado has learned the University of Colorado planned to offer Jackson State Head Football Coach Deion Sanders a starting salary of more than $5 million per year to become the next head coach of the Colorado Buffaloes.
Three sources familiar with the negotiations say CU is also offering Sanders a bevy of incentives that if reached, could significantly elevate his annual salary. All three sources spoke on the condition of anonymity as they were not authorized by CU to release details of the tentative offer.
Those sources told CBS News Colorado's Justin Adams the University Board of Regents approved making a multi-year offer to Sanders. Earlier this week, Sanders confirmed he had received an offer from CU, but he did not disclose the details.
According to the CBS News Colorado sources, if Sanders achieved nearly a dozen contractual benchmarks, his annual pay would increase by roughly 40%.
Sanders' Jackson State Tigers have posted an 11-0 record this year and will play their final game of the season Saturday against Southern University in the SWAC Championship Game. Jackson State was 11-2 in 2021. Sanders appears to be entertaining offers from Colorado, Cincinnati and the University of South Florida. One media report indicated Sanders expected to make a decision on his future following the championship game.
The next CU coach will replace Karl Dorrell who was fired in October after the Buffs got off to an 0-5 start with four of the losses by 25 or more points. Dorrell's five-year, $18 million contract signed in 2020 paid him a starting salary of $3.2 million. His buyout is approximately $8.7 million.
The Colorado Buffaloes were 1-11 this season and have appeared in five bowl games since 2004.