Deion Sanders is patient in the NIL era but he's expecting Colorado to win in 2026

Deion Sanders was on the cutting edge of the NIL and transfer portal era when he was hired by the Colorado Buffaloes back in 2023.

Even so, Sanders recently admitted at Big 12 Media Days that his patience has been tested as a head coach.

It was one thing when he brought his sons, Shedeur Sanders and Shilo Sanders, over to Boulder with him from Jackson State University. That's not to mention all-everything wideout/defensive back Travis Hunter, who ended up winning the Heisman Trophy.

It was another thing altogether to replace those players heading into 2025 at Colorado while maintaining the momentum Sanders had built up in 2023 and 2024.

Perhaps it's no surprise that Colorado went 9-4 in 2024 and followed that up by going just 3-9 in 2025.

Ever positive, upbeat and straight to the point, Sanders recently revealed that even he has needed time to adjust to how things work right now in college football.

“It’s taught me tremendous patience,” Sanders said Tuesday of the NIL and transfer portal era, according to Nick Schultz of On3. “It’s taught me that a lot of young men want to benefit from the game financially. A lot of young men want to benefit from the game because they love the game, and you’ve got to really understand there are two sides to this coin and make sure you flipping these kids on the right side because it’s a whole different game."

To Sanders' credit, he's always willing to evolve. He's aware that as a coach and face of the program, he can't get stuck in the way things used to be done.

"You got to go forward and welcome and invite some of the new-school ways and adapt to them," Sanders said.

Deion Sanders believes in Colorado Buffaloes heading into 2026

Ultimately, whether he adapts or not will determine how Colorado performs over the next few seasons. 

There are some concerns in that regard for the Buffs. After bringing in the No. 38-ranked recruiting class in 2025, which was great for Colorado's standards, Sanders' 2026 class was ranked outside of the top 50 (67).

Colorado has been strong in the portal under Sanders, but ultimately, some of the shine is off the diamond when it comes to the hype surrounding the Buffs.

That doesn't mean "Coach Prime" is any less confident, though. He knows that you are judged by wins and losses as a football coach, and he still believes in what he's doing in Boulder.

The Buffaloes are a bit of an underdog again, but Sanders remains steadfast in his expectations.

“Oh, we better win,” Sanders said, per Nick Kosko of On3. “That’s going to be the surprise. That’s the surprise. We better win. We’re going to win. I love what I got. I love what I see.”