Head coach Deion Sanders has been at Colorado for four years now. The record is what it is, and people are starting to notice.

On3's Brett McMurphy put out his Big 12 head coach rankings this week, and Sanders landed at No. 15. The only coach below him was Collin Klein, who is walking into his very first head coaching job at Kansas State.

"Now entering Sanders' fourth year in Boulder, the question is what will Coach Prime produce in 2026: a mesmerizing 2024-like season or the woeful 2023 and 2025 seasons?"

McMurphy didn't guess. He knows Colorado is a total roller coaster under Sanders.

That is the whole Sanders problem in one sentence. Sanders has gone 16-21 at Colorado overall. The good seasons and the bad ones are almost impossible to predict, and that inconsistency is exactly what knocked him down the list.

McMurphy ranked coaches on a mix of career achievement, recent results, program building, and how well they have adapted to the current college football landscape.

Sanders brings eyes to the program like nobody else in college football. But McMurphy's criteria go beyond that, and on the results side, Colorado has been all over the place.

The 2024 run was something special. Hunter took home the Heisman, and Shedeur Sanders had one of the best seasons a Big 12 quarterback has had in years. Colorado finished 9-4 and looked like a program on the rise.

Then last season came and undid a lot of that. Three wins, nine losses, no bowl game. The Buffaloes could not get it done against the teams that mattered most.

McMurphy put Utah's Morgan Scalley at No. 12, ahead of Sanders. Scalley has never been a college head coach before, either, but he has been part of Utah's staff since 2006 and carries a strong track record as defensive coordinator.

BYU's Kalani Sitake topped the list at No. 1. Kenny Dillingham of Arizona State was second, followed by Joey McGuire of Texas Tech, Sonny Dykes of TCU, and Willie Fritz of Houston.

Colorado rebuilt the roster and coaching staff before 2026 season

Sanders made serious changes after the 3-9 collapse. Colorado brought in 43 transfers and replaced both coordinator spots heading into 2026.

Brennan Marion came in as the new offensive coordinator, and he will be implementing his famous "Go-Go" offense, which emphasizes an aggressive, fast-paced RPO (run-pass option) rushing attack.

Chris Marve took over on defense. Both were seen as upgrades on what Colorado had running those units last season.

Sanders himself is entering the second year of a five-year contract extension, which ramps up the administrative and monetary pressure to deliver a winning record.

As per Aiden Checketts from SI, Quarterback Julian Lewis is expected to lead the offense. They also predicted a 7-5 finish for Sanders and the Buffaloes in 2026. If that plays out, the ranking conversation will look very different by December.

Do you think Sanders deserves to be ranked that low in the Big 12? Let us know in the comments.

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Written by

Farheen Fathima

Edited by

Zaid Quraishi