Coach Prime chose Colorado over Auburn, USF to avoid interference

According to BuffsBeat’s Josh Tolle, Coach Prime chose the Colorado football program over Auburn and USF due to his wanting to avoid “interference” from his prospective employer’s boosters and brain trust.

“Let’s talk about the facts. Sanders could’ve gone to Auburn or USF and chose to come to Colorado instead,” Tolle prefaced before saying, “This wasn’t by mistake either. Prime knew he could make the program his own without interference. This was an important step for the process with CU Football.”

Coach Prime said back in January, soon after being hired by Colorado, that he didn’t have the time to spend meeting with program power brokers.

Auburn wasn’t a real option for Coach Prime, who chose Colorado football over USF and Cincinnati

Per a source during Auburn’s November 2022 hiring cycle, Deion Sanders was always a longshot candidate to be chosen for the Tigers’ job; which was centered around Lane Kiffin with Hugh Freeze right behind him.

This all to say: Auburn was never an option for Coach Prime.

Sanders chose Colorado over USF — which was the only Group of Five school in the mix but has nearly no handle on the Tampa market from a fan support perspective — and Cincinnati, which has struggled in its first Big 12 season under first-year head coach Scott Satterfield after making history as the first G5 College Football Playoff selection under Luke Fickell.

Ultimately, the decision has paid off. The University of Colorado has a record number of applicants and Coach Prime’s son Shedeur has established himself as a potential future day-one NFL draft pick.

Though the end of Sanders’ time in Boulder is projected frequently, Sanders and his agent have both assured the Buffs fanbase that he’s got eyes on nowhere else. Not everyone is sold on that, but ultimately only the passage of time can provide clarity there.