Deiondra Sanders, daughter of Deion Sanders celebrates Coach Prime's SI Sportsperson of the Year Award: "Congrats Daddy"

Colorado Buffaloes coach, Deion Sanders was recently named the Sportsperson of the Year Award by Sports Illustrated to much uproar from the critics and applause from the supporters.

This is the seventh time Coach Prime is headlining the Sports Illustrated cover, with his first time coming in 1989 when he was still a prospect with the Atlanta Falcons.

According to Sports Illustrated, the award is given to the sportsperson with the following criteria:

"The athlete or team whose performance that year most embodies the spirit of sportsmanship and achievement."

Deiondra Sanders, Coach Prime's eldest daughter who has always been her family's No. 1 supporter, took to Instagram to congratulate her father on winning the award.

She captioned her story:

"Congrats Daddy."

Deiondra Sanders' IG story

While receiving his award at the CU Events Center on Wednesday night, Coach Prime applauded the support of the Colorado faithful.

"This is the kind of moment that I dreamt of, I prayed of," Sanders said in his acceptance speech. "You have been the best set of fans that I've ever experienced in my entire life."

The CFB world reacts to Deion Sanders winning SI Award

The CFB fraternity reacted differently to the news of Deion Sanders being awarded the Sportsperson of the Year Award by Sports Illustrated.

There has been a lot of pushback, with some prominent analysts deriding the decision after the Buffs lost eight of their last nine games to finish the season with the Pac-12's worst defense and bottom of the pile.

The Sports Illustrated editor-in-chief, Stephen Cannella highlighted why Coach Prime won the award.

"Deion Sanders dominated the sports conversation in 2023 as a transformative figure not just in Colorado, but for the entire realm of college sports. On and off the field, he represents a new model for the modern college coach," Cannella said.

Fox Sports analyst Danny Kanell, who has never hidden his dislike for the Colorado coach, immediately took to X (formerly Twitter) to share his thoughts on the award win.

"The vote must have taken place in September," Danny Kanell tweeted.

Fox Sports college football analyst Emmanuel Acho showed his support for Deion Sanders.

"I’ve never seen anything in sports quite like what Coach Prime did for the recognition of the program. The amount of hope he brought to Colorado is astounding. Well deserved," Acho wrote.