Deion Sanders has spent this week dealing with one of the ugliest moments of his Colorado tenure. But on Friday, he turned his attention away from football, drawing inspiration from one of his life’s toughest chapters.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
“To all our Cancer Family, I LOVE you,” the Colorado head coach wrote on September 25 on X. “Appreciate u, and WE need u! Don’t give up, let up, quit, or have a pity party! GOD has us in his hands. You’ve gotta BELIEVE.”
In 2025, doctors found a malignant tumor in Coach Prime’s bladder. He eventually underwent surgery to remove the cancerous bladder and reconstruct it using part of his intestine. Sanders later had a life-changing perspective after his recovery.
The treatment had left him in a very different place physically, but by June 2026, he said, “I consider myself cancer-free.” He has spoken openly about what that period looked like.
A year before that June interview, Sanders had been going through treatment while trying to remain involved with Colorado. He recalled walking around his property with bags attached to him for blood and urine while working his way back toward normal life.
In truth, Deion Sanders has spent much of his life dealing with injuries, surgeries, and health problems that most people never saw. Since 2021, Sanders has undergone 14 surgeries.
Some of the most serious problems involved blood clots in his legs, eventually leading to the amputation of two toes. Doctors later discovered the condition that would become his biggest health battle yet: bladder cancer.
Now, Sanders spends a considerable amount of time raising cancer awareness and urging people to get tested. Instead of hiding those details, he discusses them publicly because, as he put it, men often do not talk about those issues.
In a September 2025 interview with Good Morning America, Sanders described the pain of learning how to use his reconstructed bladder. He also talked about nighttime incontinence and the reality of dealing with those problems after surgery.
In July 2026, Sanders took that message a step further by partnering with Intuitive to raise awareness about surgical options. The company said the collaboration is intended to help patients understand their choices and have better conversations with their doctors.
Sanders specifically said he wanted people to ask questions and understand what options are available to them. His cancer journey has also often put him in direct contact with other survivors.
In October 2025, Sanders met eight cancer patients at a UCHealth facility in Colorado. He listened to their experiences and talked about his own recovery. He described the patients as his role models and stressed the importance of family, friends, and community during treatment.
All that experience matters in life for Deion Sanders. Because overcoming a loss is far more easy than overcoming 14 surgeries. And after the Northwestern loss, Coach Prime did handle things very differently than he usually does.
First, he openly accepted that his QB still has a lot to do. A video of CU safety Ben Finneseth also went viral before the game after he called Northwestern’s temporary stadium a “library.” Sanders made Finneseth address the comment himself, opening Tuesday’s press conference with an apology.
Not just that, Sanders said he saw players laughing after the defeat and could not understand how they could find anything funny about a 41-7 loss. Three days later, he said he was no longer willing to let behavior that hurt the team linger.
“A year ago, I didn’t put my foot down in it enough,” Sanders said Tuesday. “It lingered a little bit. Then it imploded.” Analysts and former players like Emmanuel Acho, though, openly questioned Coach Prime’s actions.
Appearing on The Matt Barrie Show, Finebaum said he felt bad watching what has happened to Colorado under Sanders. He said he was “sad” to see Sanders’ coaching career because, in his view, it “just continues to spiral.”
Acho, though, raised concerns about Colorado’s ability to land top five-star QBs. He questioned whether elite recruits would still choose the Buffs after seeing how Sanders handles young players when things go wrong.