Last Thursday, the Colorado Buffaloes announced that they would be leaving the Pac-12 to rejoin the Big 12 effective July 1, 2024. Colorado’s move and the conference’s struggle to complete a TV deal have had a domino effect on the Pac-12, leading to other schools making moves as well.
According to one ESPN report, Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders was impactful in Colorado’s move back to its old stomping ground. According to the report, one Big 12 head coach said, “Deion was pushing for it.”
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that someone with the profile of Sanders would do his best to pursue something he believed would be beneficial for his program. Colorado athletic director Rick George had the following to say about the move to the Big 12 and how it would positively affect what Sanders is trying to build in Boulder:
“I will tell you there’s tremendous benefits for being in the Big 12 for the direction that Coach Prime is going as it relates to recruiting,” George said. “Being able to play in Orlando against UCF, where he’s recruited very heavily. The state of Texas has always been a priority for us, and now playing four teams in that area… I tried to include all of our coaches in this, and Coach Prime certainly and I had conversations about this, as well as I did with other coaches.”
With Sanders now leading the Buffaloes program, Colorado has the ability to recruit nationally, and joining a conference where you can travel to states like Texas and Florida for competition will only help grow the Buffs brand.
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