31-03-2025
University of Colorado expects Coach Prime to sign new contract Monday: Breaking down the $54M deal
The University of Colorado expects its head football coach, Deion "Coach Prime" Sanders, to sign his new five-year contract on Monday, making him
one of the highest-paid football coaches
in the country.
The 29-page contract calls for Sanders to make an average of $10.8 million per year and includes a slew of incentives and allowances ranging from $300,000 per year for private jets to help with recruiting trips to a country club membership and two SUVs for his driving needs.
Steve Hurlbert, director of athletics strategic communications for CU, told CBS News Colorado that while the new contract was announced Friday, it won't be signed until Monday.
"Since the contract was approved by the Board of Regents on a day the university was closed, it's being routed for university signatures today," said Hurlbert. "The contract will be fully executed today."
Last Friday was a Spring Break holiday on campus.
The new deal calls for Sanders to receive $500,000 per year in base salary, but another $3,250,000. Per year to take part in television and radio shows. That broadcast fee increases by another $500,000 in years three and five of the contract.
He'll get another $3 million for developing student-athletes and football program outreach.
Sanders will mostly appear in public in Nike apparel per a clause in the contract.
He will also get another $50,000 if the team achieves a specific academic performance rating after each academic year.
There are several other on-field performance incentives that could further boost the contract's bottom line:
There are additional monetary incentives for Sanders if he is named Big 12 Coach of the Year or National Coach of the Year.
CU is also providing Sanders with two full-sized SUVs, a country club membership, 10 season tickets for CU home games and four season tickets for CU men's and women's basketball games.
He will get a budget of $300,000 annually to use for private jets for recruiting.
If Sanders leaves CU in 2025 for another football coaching job, he or his new employer will have to pay CU $12 million. That amount drops to $10 million in the second year of the contract and down to $3 million in 2029, the final year of the pact.
In a statement, CU Athletic Director Rick George said that Sanders "has restored CU football to our rightful place as a national power."
The university said more than 54 million viewers watched CU football during the 2024 season and that applications to attend CU have increased during Sanders' tenure, especially among minority applicants. CU estimates that home football games this past year brought in $93.9 million in direct economic impact to the city of Boulder.
"I'm excited for the opportunity to continue building something special at Colorado," Sanders said in a news release. When CU hired Sanders, the Buffs had just completed a 1-11 season. In 2024, the team went 9-4 and appeared in the Alamo Bowl.
