How is Marketer of the Year, not the University of Colorado and AD Rick George?


The hiring of Deion Sanders delivered the "Prime Effect" by boosting every important brand and business metric for the school: visibility, prestige, interest, penetration, revenue, and profit.

A gamble that paid off.
In response to a press question about where CU got the money to hire Deion Sanders as the new football head coach on Dec. 4, 2022, Rick George said: “We don’t have the money yet, but I know we’ll have it.”

Return on Investment?
Based on the data so far, his worth to the university in 2023 is estimated at $280 million. Some say it will be well over $1 billion by the end of his five-year $29.5 million contract.

The 2023 numbers:

Ticket sales up 152%.
Just under $20 million in additional revenue.

TV Viewership up:
Colorado had the most-watched game of the season through the first 11 weeks with 10.03 million viewers and 5 of the 13 most-watched college games this season. For comparison Alabama, a perennial top draw, had three of the top 13.

Merch sales up:
Online team store sales increased 2,544% since last September.
Physical team store sales increased 564% since last September.
10 all-time highest sales days in the history of the online team store

Enrollment Applications up:
First-year applications are up 26.4% year over year
Out of State applications are up 29.8% (valued at $36,000 per year)
International applications are up 38.4% from 97 countries, including 16 that didn’t have any applications last year.
Black or African American applications are up 80.6%

Donations to the athletic department up 40%:
An $8 million increase over 2022.

Earned Media Coverage $249 million:
Five games on national TV broadcasts this season (most in CU history).
An estimated advertisement equivalency of $375 million, as calculated by Cision. The difference is roughly $249 million from 2022.

Economic Impact on the City of Boulder up:
CU home games generated an economic impact of $113.2 million on the broader Boulder region. $72.1 million, in direct spending by visitors, organizers, media and sponsors for purchase transactions related to lodging, transportation, food and beverage, retail and recreation. A massive jump from 2022 according to Visit Boulder.

Intangible Value (Prestige) from Coach Prime media appearances:
Docuseries on Amazon Prime
“60 Minutes” feature
Starred in a Nike commercial
Time Magazine Cover
SI Sportsman of The Year Cover
Celebrity campus appearances from The Rock to Hall of Fame athletes to hip-hop icons.
Consideration from a Nobel Laurette. A nationally acclaimed scientist from California was considering joining the faculty at MIT. She agreed to consider CU on one condition; she wanted to meet Deion Sanders.

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