Since entering the college football coaching world in 2020 at Jackson State and later making the jump to the FBS with Colorado, Deion Sanders has been one of the hottest topics in the sport. Through two seasons at Colorado, Coach Prime has led them to a mediocre record of 13-12. However, while that record might not raise eyebrows, he’s brought an immense amount of attention to Boulder and helped turn around a program that was in complete turmoil.
This upcoming season will present a new test, as he will now lead a team without his son, Shedeur Sanders, at quarterback, or Heisman winner Travis Hunter, making plays all over the field on both sides of the ball. While some, including myself, see this as shaping up to be a major prove-it year for Deion at Colorado, ESPN’s Paul Finebaum sees it differently.
.@finebaum doesn't believe Deion Sanders has anything to prove this season 👀 pic.twitter.com/s4P933mESf
— First Take (@FirstTake) July 10, 2025
The clip above came from Finebaum’s appearance on First Take, but he also expanded on his thoughts during a segment on Get Up, where he once again stated that Deion has “nothing to prove” this season. However, he highlighted the need for Sanders to show “consistency,” which to me is absolutely something to prove and one of the most important qualities a head coach can have in sports.
He also posed a key question that still remains about Colorado’s head coach: “Can he coach good players as opposed to exceptional players?” So once again we have Finebaum completely contradicting himself as he highlights a massive thing for Deion to prove in his first season without two superstar players since 2021 and doing so in a Power Four conference. Finebaum does make a great point though as the ability to successfully coach good players, not just great ones, is a key factor in separating good coaches from great ones and often leads to longevity in the coaching profession.
If Finebaum truly believes that Deion has nothing left to prove at Colorado, then I believe that he is strongly suggesting that Coach Prime should leave Boulder. After all, if a coach has maxed out at a school like Colorado, that is on a lower level than many others in college football, leaving them with nothing left to prove there, shouldn’t he be looking to move on to bigger and brighter pastures?
Besides the point, I couldn’t disagree more with Finebaum, and he pretty much disagreed with himself with every point he made. With the financial and institutional support Coach Prime has received from Colorado along with 14 starters gone from last year's team, this upcoming season is a big one with a lot to prove for Coach Prime. While a national championship or even a playoff berth may not be in the picture, Sanders still needs to prove he can win with the pieces he has.
The Buffs still have plenty of question marks heading into the 2025 season and won’t have time to hide, as they will be tested early with an opening game against a tough Georgia Tech team.