College football analyst Paul Finebaum has never been a fan of Deion Sanders because of his popularity despite a lack of success as a coach. It’s also a big reason why regular fans aren’t too big on Coach Prime. But recently, the analyst put away his grievances and admitted that despite his criticisms, Deion has remained relevant because he is entertaining.
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Sanders has certainly ruffled some feathers outside of Colorado ever since becoming the Buffaloes’ head coach in 2023. From making his son the QB1 to the things he says to the media, some people take issue with his style of coaching. But everyone on the team and around Deion has always said they love him because he’s a players’ coach that “gets it.”
Despite the good credit, Sanders has to deal with a lot of bad as well. But even a heavy critic like Finebaum has to admit from time to time that Coach Prime is still entertaining. That’s why he gets discussed so much.
“He’s still one of the most entertaining people in sports. We’re gravitated to him, even though Vegas is saying the over and under for the win total in 6.5,” Finebaum said on First Take. “Most of the time, the number one morning show on television, First Take, doesn’t talk about 6-win teams. But we talk about Deion because he’s entertaining, he’s compelling.”
It’s a hard argument to disagree with. Not many teams with as low of an outlook as Colorado get covered this much in the media. But the Deion-effect makes it so news outlets need to talk about him. He simply has too much of a following to ignore.
Finebaum even went on to admit that he was proven wrong last year. He and other analysts were adamant that they wouldn’t be talking about him come bowl season. Well, they were wrong.
“I think last year he proved that he is relevant, and quite frankly, I’m the one right here with Stephen A. who said I don’t think we’ll be talking about this guy in November. And we were because they won a couple of big games, they had magical players, and they really did matter,” Finebaum said.
Not only did the Buffs matter, but they seemingly owned the spotlight all season. Even with a 9-4 record, they were the talk of CFB because Travis Hunter won the Heisman Trophy as a two-way player. Furthermore, Shedeur Sanders’ draft projections also dominated major airwaves for months leading up to the draft.
.@finebaum doesn’t believe Deion Sanders has anything to prove this season pic.twitter.com/s4P933mESf
— First Take (@FirstTake) July 10, 2025
That’s why Finebaum doesn’t think Deion has much to prove this season. “I don’t think he does… It doesn’t really matter what he does this year,” Finebaum stated.
However, he also noted that Prime will do something attention-worthy if his team is struggling to offset the bad press.
“Now the real question, though, is in October, November of this year, without Travis Hunter and without his son playing, will we still care? More than likely, he’ll say something that gets our attention. But average teams don’t get a lot of attention when we’re talking about the CFP.”
It’s a good question to ask. Now that the two best players on Colorado are gone, there’s not a lot of appeal to watch them on TV. But maybe a new star that Deion has hidden away will emerge and become the new focal point.
Finebaum Blasts Deion For Recommending Cap
Regardless of the nice bravado that Finebaum put on for the TV segment, he later had some choice words for Coach Prime for suggesting that the NCAA install a cap on team spending. It’s not a bad idea, but Finebaum questioned the timing of the suggestion.
“I find it just a tad bit interesting and maybe a slight bit hypocritical that Deion Sanders after his two great players — I mean, we’re not just talking about good players in terms of Travis Hunter, one of the best players in modern college football history — as they depart, suddenly, Deion wants a cap,” Finebaum said.
It’s a great point to make. There were no cries for a cap from Sanders when he had the two most valuable players in CFB. But now that they’re gone and his team is looking worse, he wants it to be considered. It’s a bit hypocritical.
However, Finebaum did mention on First Take that every CFB coach is hypocritical. So, he’s not surprised; he just thinks Deion is getting out ahead of a bad season by already making excuses.
“So, Deion is simply trying to tell the media, ‘Hey, let’s talk about something other than my football team, which is going to be painfully boring, and perhaps even mediocre this year.’”
We’ll see if that’s the case in time. But Finebaum might want to be careful. Coach Prime already made him and other analysts look foolish once. You know what they say, fool me once, shame on you. But fool me twice? Then it’ll be on Finebaum and the others.