Inside Deion Sanders' first month of games at Colorado - ESPN

BOULDER, Colo. — About 90 minutes before Saturday's kickoff, Colorado assistant coach Tim Brewster took a lap around Folsom Field, stopping near where USC quarterback Caleb Williams was going through his pregame routine.

Williams, the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner and the projected No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL draft, had the standard set of TV cameras and smartphones pointed toward him as he head-bobbed to music. But it hardly compared to the paparazzi-like throng parked in front of Colorado's tunnel in the northeast corner of the stadium.

First came the visiting athletes: C.C. Sabathia, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, DeAndre Jordan and Desean Jackson, then others who are frequently hanging with coach Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes, such as Terrell Owens and Warren Sapp. Then came the rappers: DaBaby, who high-stepped when he and Sanders led the team on the field, along with Tobe Nwigwe and Lecrae. Jay-Z and LeBron James had been rumored to be attending but didn't end up making it.

The last and most anticipated entrance came from Sanders, surrounded by security. He has grabbed attention unlike any first-year coach in FBS history. And like he did as a Pro Football Hall of Fame cornerback, Sanders never let the spotlight get away during an incredible first month.

«It's become way bigger than college football,» said Brewster, who joined Sanders' staff at Jackson State before coming to Colorado. «Every game is an event.»

Sanders has been a magnet for attention from the moment Colorado hired him in December. The Buffaloes became the story of the offseason with their bold roster overhaul. But when the games began, Colorado and Sanders would be competing for attention with bigger brand names, future Hall of Fame coaches and more