After a week of optimism in the media following Colorado’s narrow loss to BYU, Deion Sanders turned up the urgency behind closed doors. In a fiery speech to his players, captured by Reach the People Media, the head coach challenged the Buffaloes to confront complacency and rediscover their hunger for greatness.
Sanders began by drilling down on the theme of consistency. “Consistency isn’t just a football word, it’s a life word,” he told his team. “A consistent person will be successful as long as he or she is consistent. Win or lose, you’re the same. Good or bad, you’re the same. That implies reliability. We can rely on him. Can we rely on you?”
The coach then turned his focus to the NIL era, contrasting the old model of hard work first and payment later with the modern setup in which players are rewarded before proving themselves.
🔥 Coach Prime Speaking Facts. Complacentcy. Paid vs Effort 🦬
— JaKi 🇺🇸 (@JaKiTruth) October 2, 2025
"We paying you off of something you haven't done. You say I'm good. I don't have to work my butt off at practice. You don't understand what you could get. Instead you settle for what you got"
📽️ @KingDarius_NS https://t.co/godCmpwNK5 pic.twitter.com/lNFJRxasaL
“Back in the day, we had to put in two weeks of work before we got a check. You worked your butt off, then you said, ‘Thank you, I appreciate you.’ That’s how it was. Now we changed the game. College football, we [are] making a lot of money..we gonna give you all of this, and we pray that you make it. You know what the problem is? You can have more, but you already got something.”
Sanders warned that too many athletes are falling into the trap of settling for what they already have instead of striving for more.
“When you ain’t got nothing and you work your butt off, you can have it all. That’s how it was. But now, we gave you this. And some of you [are] saying, l’m good. I don’t have to go hard every snap. I already got that…the deal was you come here, you ball, you work your butt off, and then you get this. Now we’re paying you off something you ain’t done.”
For Colorado, the timing of this message could not be more crucial. A road trip to TCU followed by a home date with Iowa State represents a defining two-game stretch. At 2-3 the Buffaloes need wins now to stay on track for a second straight bowl appearance.
Sanders’ point was simple, comfort won’t get Colorado there. Consistency, urgency, and accountability will. “You don’t understand what you could get,” Sanders told his team, “and you’re settling for what you got.”
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