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PAC-12
University of Colorado Boulder

Colorado chancellor talks Pac-12 expansion, Big 12 rumor, Deion Sanders and recruiting

BOULDER, Colo. – As the chancellor of the University of Colorado Boulder, Phil DiStefano is the boss of "Coach Prime" Deion Sanders.  

He oversees the campus, including the Colorado athletic director. He governs the Pac-12 Conference as one of 10 members of the league’s board of directors. He also has governed the NCAA as a member of its board of governors.

So with all that power and oversight experience in major college sports, how does he feel about the notion of Colorado leaving the Pac-12 to rejoin the Big 12?

Or expanding the Pac-12 back to 12 schools?

Or how Sanders, his new football coach, has electrified the community and built a roster with dozens of players transferring in from other colleges?

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DiStefano answered those questions and more in a wide-ranging interview Friday with USA TODAY Sports, a day before Sanders showcased his new team in a sold-out spring scrimmage at Folsom Field.

What did Colorado chancellor Phil DiStefano say?

Deion Sanders, right, hugs Phil DiStefano, chancellor of the University of Colorado Boulder, after Sanders was introduced as the new head football coach Dec. 4, 2022.

In short, DiStefano says he wants the Pac-12 to expand back to 12 schools after UCLA and Southern California leave for the Big Ten next year. He pooh-poohed the notion of joining the Big 12.

He said the hiring of Sanders in December already has been “worth the investment” and acknowledged that his football program was held back by issues restricting the admission of transfer students. Since those restrictions recently were eased for all students this semester, he said he hasn’t heard of any football transfer recruits who were denied entry.

He also said he’d like to see the Pac-12 go for a five-year contract in its new media rights negotiations instead of the much longer deal that it had in the past.  

Pac-12 negotiations

The league is seeking a new media rights deal with television and streaming partners that provide revenue to be shared with each Pac-12 member. The current contract with ESPN and Fox expires in 2024 and was a big driver in revenue sharing that now pays around $35 million per school per year. That’s well below the revenue shares earned in the football-crazed Big Ten and Southeastern conferences (about $60 million).

But DiStefano said “there’s a very good possibility” the next deal will bring in per-school revenues ranking third among the Power 5 conferences, ahead of the Big 12 and Atlantic Coast conferences. He also hopes it’s a five- to seven-year deal instead of being locked into a longer contract like the 12-year deal that ends next year and once was touted as the most valuable in college sports.

"Everyone passed us up" in revenue during that 12-year period after, he said.  

A shorter contract would provide flexibility amid a turbulent media industry that’s been disrupted by internet streaming services.

"I think in five years we’ll get a much better feel for streaming services," said DiStefano, Colorado’s chancellor since 2009. "That’s changing so much, and it’s going to put us in a position to pick up some things that maybe we’re not going to get at this point."

Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders (12) prepares to pass during the first half of the spring game at Folsom Field.

Leaving the Pac-12?

Without a new media deal in place for the Pac-12, rumors have swirled that Colorado might go back to its old league, the Big 12, for the sake of stability.

Is that a backup plan for Colorado?

"Nobody’s asked us – I shouldn’t even say that. We’re committed to the Pac-12," he said. "What I’ve said along with the other presidents and chancellors is we’re not going to even think about going anywhere, none of us, until we see what kind of offer we get, and that’s still being worked out. And I’m confident it’s going to be fine."

He noted how the Big 12 has only one school in the prestigious Association of American Universities (AAU) – Kansas – unlike the Pac-12, which has several, including Colorado. He also said Colorado has had far more alumni engagement at football games in California cities than it ever had in Big 12 cities.

Pac-12 expansion?

With USC and UCLA departing the Pac-12, the league has considered adding schools to replace them. San Diego State and Southern Methodist in Dallas are considered the prime candidates.

DiStefano would vote on any expansion proposal.

"I’d like to have 12 schools," DiStefano said.

A big issue, he said, would be whether those schools would bring enough revenue and other benefits to the league to justify their getting an equal cut of the revenue pie.

He noted that neither SDSU nor SMU are AAU schools, which is important to the league presidents and chancellors in charge. On the other hand, SDSU “did really well in basketball,” DiStefano said. “They have a new stadium in football, a good Southern California market. Dallas is a good area for recruiting.”

He said expansion depends on the new media deal, which is “getting close,” he said.

Colorado head coach holds the hand of fan Peggy Coppom before the start of the spring game at Folsom Field.

Was Colorado football team being held back?

Before hiring Sanders in December, Colorado seemed to be drastically behind the times in recruiting transfer players from other colleges. A bevy of talented players left Colorado to transfer elsewhere, but not so much the other way around. As a result, the Buffaloes finished 1-11 in football last year, its 15th losing season in the past 17 years.

Then when Sanders was introduced as his new coach Dec. 4, DiStefano announced a new “pilot program” that would ease academic restrictions for all students (not just athletes) seeking to transfer to CU from other four-year colleges. Five months later, Sanders has at least 28 transfers coming in for 2023, with more on the way.

The perception was that this transfer issue held back the football program.

"Yes," DiStefano said. "I know it’s been in the press that former coach (Karl) Dorrell talked to us about it. Seriously, he never talked to me about it."

What was the problem?

Previously, it would take three to four weeks to evaluate whether course credits from a student’s previous school would apply toward graduation at Colorado. Now it takes 24 to 48 hours to evaluate under the new program, DiStefano said. Unlike before, it’s also easier to transfer course credits from other schools as electives even if CU doesn’t offer those courses.

"There are certain things that even now we don’t accept (academically)," DiStefano said. "So a course has to be a C-minus or better, and it can’t be remedial. It has to be from a four-year accredited institution. So I would talk in those terms of what (those) criteria are, which are the same criteria we have today. I never got into electives or non-electives because I didn’t know what the issue was to be honest."

Colorado fans during the first half of the spring game at Folsom Field.

What about Deion Sanders’ recruiting strategy?

Sanders’ transfer class ranks No. 1 in the country, according to 247Sports. But several CU players from last year’s team have left or were forced out, perhaps in response to the influx of heightened competition.

This resembles pro football, where teams upgrade rosters by signing free agents and cutting players who underperform.

"We brought him in to change the program, to win, to win championships," DiStefano said. "The way I looked at it was as long we were doing it the right way and we had this new transfer rule that everyone was following, that we weren’t cutting edges – that’s why we hired him."

Have any transfer recruits been denied admission?

"I don’t believe so," DiStefano said. "I haven’t heard of any, so from what I heard, from athletics, is that it’s working extremely well."

CU athletics didn’t immediately respond to a message seeking more information.

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders during the first half of the spring game at Folsom Field.

Is Deion Sanders worth the investment already?

Right after Sanders was introduced as coach Dec. 4, athletic director Rick George was asked about coming up with the money to pay Sanders at nearly $6 million per year over five years. Dorrell, the previous coach, had a contract that averaged $3.6 million. George answered by saying, “We don’t have the money yet, but I know we’ll have it.”

Since then, CU has sold out of season tickets for the first time in 27 years, hosted its biggest crowd ever for its annual spring game Saturday (45,000) and watched its merchandise sales jump 505% in December alone from the previous year, according to CU.

"I would say as of today, with ticket sales, donor gifts, what we’re doing with merchandise – that definitely was worth the investment that we made," DiStefano said.

How has his life changed?

Before Sanders was hired, CU was blown out of nearly every game it played in 2022.

"Social media was saying, 'Fire the athletic director and chancellor. They don’t know what they’re doing,'" DiStefano acknowledged. "Within a month or two, it just changed dramatically.

"One word I use all the time is it’s been transformational … since December, no one has talked to me about a 1-11 season last year. It’s all about the future, it’s all about winning championships and what Coach Prime is going to bring to the table."

Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com

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