Colorado athletic director who hired Deion Sanders to step down

OutKick's Dan Dakich joins 'Fox & Friends First' to discuss football legend Deion Sanders' cancer diagnosis and coaching future. 

The man who hired Deion Sanders to lead the University of Colorado's football team is set to step down. 

Colorado athletic director Rick George announced Thursday he will be leaving his position at the end of the academic year. He will be staying with the university in a fundraising advisory role. 

"After considerable thought and discussions with my family dating back to last spring, I have decided it is time for new leadership to guide the department," George said in a statement. 

"I look forward to doing everything I can to ensure a smooth transition. I also wanted to time my announcement so that I could support Coach Prime and our football team this season, which I’m looking forward to continuing in my new role." 

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Deion Sanders, CUs new head football coach, and athletic director Rick George, right, chat in the Arrow Touchdown Club during a news conference Dec. 4, 2022, in Boulder, Colo. (Helen H. Richardson/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)

George has been Colorado's AD since 2013 and made his biggest move in 2022 when he hired Sanders. Sanders led the Buffaloes to a bowl game appearance in 2024 but will not make a bowl game and will finish with a losing record for the second time in three seasons after a loss to West Virginia Saturday. 

Colorado is 16-19 since Sanders took over, including 3-7 this season.

"This is not who we are. We're better than this, and they deserve better than this. I want better than this. I feel like I coach better than this. I feel like we got players that are so much better than what the