Colorado QB Shedeur and father Deion Sanders an NIL metaphor: Analyst

Colorado football head coach Deion Sanders and his son, Shedeur, are the perfect personification of the differences between the post-NIL era of college football the latter is part of now and the less-rewarding system the former was part of during the latter half of the 1980s — at least that’s the picture OutKick’s Grayson Weir painted, at least.

“The landscape of college football was extremely different when Deion Sanders played at Florida State compared to how things are today with his son, Shedeur,” Weir prefaced before saying, “That can be said for both on-field schematics in terms of Xs and Os, as well as how things operate around the sport. Imagine the sanctions that Florida State would have received if Deion arrived to Doak in a Maybach when he was still in school…”

As Weir notes, the younger Sanders has a massive brand, with more than 1.3 million followers across Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter, an annual NIL value above $1 million, and deals with Mercedes-Benz, Gatorade, BRADY, and Beats by Dre, among others.

Colorado football benefitting from NIL system with Deion Sanders in tow

Before “Prime Time” made it to Northern Colorado, the primary NIL moneymakers resided on the coast of California with USC and UCLA, as well as Washington and Oregon, being the Pac-12’s bag-getters.

With Sanders in tow, though, that has changed. The primary NIL stars from Jackson State, namely Shedeur and the 2022 class’ No. 1 overall recruit Travis Hunter, are now in Boulder, and incoming 5-star Cormani McClain and 4-star skill position studs Dylan Edwards, Adam Hopkins, and Omarrion Miller could be in line for big paydays too.

After being largely irrelevant since the 2016 season, Colorado football is in the spotlight again, and for probably as long as Sanders is here. Until “Prime Time” hits the dusty trail in disgrace or in search of a new coaching home, the players he recruits need to soak in those NIL earnings for as long as he can.