Colorado AD sets clear expectations for Coach Prime & Co. after lucrative $54M extension

Deion Sanders, also known as Coach Prime, and the Colorado Buffaloes had a strong second season with him as head coach. The team qualified for a bowl game and nearly qualified for the Big 12 Championship Game, only missing out because of a tiebreaker.

Now after an offseason where there were rumors that Coach Prime could leave Colorado to join an NFL team, the Buffaloes have ensured that he will stick around for many years to come. On Friday, Colorado announced that he signed a five-year, $54 million contract extension that runs through the 2029 season.

On Tuesday, Colorado athletic director Rick George appeared on 'Denver Sports 104.3' to talk about the extension. He also spoke about the expectations for the Colorado Buffaloes next season and throughout the duration of Coach Prime's contract (starts at 1:45).

"Well look I think it goes back to the days when McCartney that crew and Barnett. We were winning, nine, 10 games going to Bowl games, we were competing for conference championships.

"That's what the expectation is. You know I think as Coach would say, the first season was kind of a season of hope. We were 4-8, got out to a great start, beat a really good TCU team to kick off the season."

He continued:

"Then it became a season of expectations this past year. We were 9-3. We were tied for the conference title at the end of the year, regular season, but you know because of the tie breaker we were third or fourth.

"We went to the bowl game and that's the expectation moving forward. We have every belief that we have the tools in place to able to be successful."

Coach Prime's new contract makes him one of the highest-paid head coaches in the nation

Coach Prime will earn $54 million over the next five seasons, but he will not have the same salary each season. In 2025 and 2026, his salary will be $10 million. His salary will increase to $11 million in 2027 and 2028 before reaching $12 million for the final season of the contract in 2029.

Based on his salary for the 2025 season, his $10 million salary puts him tied for the eighth highest-paid head coach in college football. He is tied with legendary NFL head coach Bill Belichick, who signed with the North Carolina Tar Heels in December. Georgia's Kirby Smart is the highest-paid head coach in the nation, making $13.2 million annually.