The University of Colorado’s athletic department is under fire after an internal audit uncovered that it overpaid head football coach Deion Sanders a $50,000 bonus for the 2024 Alamo Bowl, a payment the coach did not earn.
The same review also identified $71,333 in excess compensation for assistant coaches and staff tied to that game, contributing to a total loss of roughly $1.2 million on the bowl.
While the audit did not label the discrepancies as intentional wrongdoing, it warned that ambiguous language in Sanders’ contract and a lack of clear budgeting procedures created the conditions for the overpayments.
Policy Overhaul Planned
University officials say they will revise postseason compensation policies, require budgets for future bowl appearances, and consolidate spending reviews under the CU Boulder Business, Finance, and Infrastructure Office.
Athletic director Greg Gankas emphasized that the department is committed to eliminating decentralized spending decisions and ensuring that future bonuses are tied to clearly defined criteria.
The audit calculated that the university spent about $4.2 million on the 2024 Alamo Bowl while receiving only $1.996 million in conference distributions and $768,050 from ticket sales, leaving a deficit of $1.238 million.
Colorado finished the season 9‑4 overall, capping the year with a 36‑14 loss to BYU in San Antonio, a game that was not part of the New Year’s Six lineup.
The program’s financial strain is underscored by a projected $27 million deficit for fiscal 2026, heightening the urgency of tightening fiscal controls across the athletic program.
Going forward, the university plans to embed stricter oversight mechanisms, including mandatory budget approvals and clearer definitions of New Year’s Six versus non‑New Year’s Six bowl incentives, to prevent similar overpayments and restore stakeholder confidence.