Coach Prime’s relationship with the media is alienating his most loyal supporters and exposing a fracturing program.
The Colorado Buffaloes under Deion Sanders have been objectively underwhelming. While the Buffs have provided several exciting moments, both on and off the field, the results have not approached expectations.
One major saving grace that has been a relative constant since December 2022 was blind-faith-level optimism. The coach demanding people ‘believe’ in what he’s doing is losing those who did.
What happens when supporters and dissenters sound the same?
Until very recently, the volume of Coach Prime supporters far outweighed the detractors. Even though Sanders likes to pretend that there’s an army of haters always at the gates.
Sanders wants opposition voices so he can lean on the haters concept. However, that only really works when you’re winning. When you’re not, any commentary on your haters falls flat. The very term is based in jealousy. No one is jealous of what has happened over the last couple of years.
Sanders was itching for haters before he ever called his first CU practice or game. Every media availability has had a tone of him against them. Which is a wild position to take considering the symbiotic relationship between a program and its media. There was only one person in that room rooting for Sanders to fail, and he was dealt with in year one.
The supporters now sound like the enemy
Sanders walked into a perfect media situation but set it on fire almost from day one. Prior to his arrival, this program was not only not winning, but they also had little else to hang their hat on. He took over a 1-11 program and infused hype and optimism in a way that has never been seen before.
In any Colorado or Coach Prime press conference you have seen, the truth is out in plain sight. Talking over and even challenging questions were asked as if most of the people in that room hadn’t been doing this for a very long time. That media group wanted to believe everything he was selling. Prime doesn’t even have that anymore.
The biggest dissenters speak from the loudest megaphone. This is a common internet concept. What we see and hear is not representative of the majority, it’s just a few people screaming loudly and frequently. Prime’s biggest issue has always been expecting a time when everyone would love him as much as his dedicated fans do. Which was never going to happen because the media are not supposed to be fans.
In any press conference, CU's room is divided like a high school cafeteria. Instead of cliques, it’s divided by levels of optimism. The veteran news reporters are doing a job, but are hopeful he can turn it around. The younger folks tend to buy whatever he’s saying and lean into the hype. There are some who have a wealth of experience who will take things as they come objectively. Then there’s the ones who are favored the most. Recently, that group has started to say and write things they previously wouldn’t dare.
They say winning fixes everything in sports. For Sanders, being about to stack up victories might not be enough to unite a divided fan base.
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