Amid 2025’s chaos, struggling coaches cling to each other like a brotherhood of bruised egos. The first call for help is brewing at Boulder. The loss of stars like Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter has hit Colorado hard, with discipline issues and leadership gaps compounding problems. Deion Sanders’ Buffaloes now sit with a 3-6 overall record and 1-5 in the Big 12, sinking near the conference bottom.

But Coach Prime isn’t the only one drowning in this misery. In a rare moment away from the spotlight, Coach Prime and Clemson’s $115m coach Dabo Swinney had a little chat. “Clemson coach Dabo Swinney says he talked with Colorado coach Deion Sanders on the phone today,” Clemson writer Chapel Fowler writes on X. “Unclear who reached out to whom, but they had ‘a little conversation’ as both coaches wrap up trying 2025 seasons. Clemson is 3-5, 2-4 ACC. Colorado is 3-6, 1-5 Big 12.” Yeah, misery indeed requires company. But Coach Prime is in much worse condition than Swinney here.

So it’s not really wrong for us to expect that Coach Prime would have dialed Swinney’s number amid a crisis. Plus, Sanders previously has said that, “He is one of my favorites. I love him to life. I love the man.” Now, Swinney is the right man because he comes with a championship pedigree. The Tigers suffered shocking losses to underdogs like Georgia Tech and Duke. It was the first time Duke had won at Death Valley since 1980. Offensive struggles are glaring, with Clemson ranked last in the ACC in points per game (19.8). The defense has allowed big plays, including 361 passing yards to Duke’s QB.

Still, Swinney passionately defends his record, reminding critics of Clemson’s eight conference titles in ten years and seven playoff appearances. This season is giving off major 2010 vibes, when Clemson went 6-7 and dropped the Meineke Car Care Bowl. And as for Coach Prime, the situation is not that similar. When “Coach Prime” took over, he brought big promises and even bigger moments. A Heisman winner in Travis Hunter, an NFL draft pick in his son Shedeur Sanders, and the most wins for Colorado since 2016. But 2025 has been a nightmare.

After back-to-back blowout losses to Utah (53-7) and Arizona (52-17), Colorado has been outscored 81-7 in first halves over two weeks. At this point, Colorado ranks near the bottom in the Big 12 in total offense and defense, 15th in both, with an offense that sputters behind a patchy offensive line and a defense giving up big plays. Sure, Deion Sanders took over a 1-11 team, but this season’s kind of tricky when you look closer. Before this, Colorado had hit at least four wins every year since 2014.

So the phone call might just be about how difficult things have been this season. But no one knows what’s going to happen next, but Swinney knows that in today’s era, college coaches don’t have as much room to make mistakes before getting fired.

The cost behind coaching decisions

“I may get fired today, Graham’s sitting there in the back, so I don’t know, can’t say I’d blame him,” Dabo Swinney knew about his destiny right after Duke’s loss. Dabo Swinney’s Clemson buyout is a jaw-dropping $60 million. Despite a rough 2025 season that has left Clemson fans frustrated, this buyout essentially protects Swinney’s job because no school can easily afford to pay him off. If Swinney decides to jump to the NFL, Clemson gets nothing from him.

But if he leaves for another college program, he owes Clemson $4.5 million if he heads to Alabama, and $3 million to any other school in 2026 and 2027, with that debt shrinking each year. On the other side, let’s know a bit about Swinney’s telephone partner’s finances if Colorado doesn’t need the Prime Time magic anymore. Coach Prime’s $33.6 million buyout as of December 2025 ranks 33rd among college football coaches.

It’s a steep price for a program still searching for consistent success. For a program like Colorado, Deion was a brand name for them. Since 2022, Sanders has landed big names like Travis Hunter and five-star QB Julian Lewis, pulling in hype and fans. Yet, while the offense shines, the defense often flails, lacking depth and superstar talent outside Hunter. That imbalance has led to brutal losses and growing frustration.