The Deion Sanders Experience in Boulder, Colo. is yielding a better on-field return as year two of the grand experiment continues. Interestingly enough, a more consistent performance on the gridiron is happening against the backdrop of falling television ratings for Coach Prime's program.
Colorado's victory over Arizona this past Saturday drew only 2.02 million viewers, per Sports Media Watch. This makes it the least-watched television event of the Sanders era. Which makes a lot of sense considering the Buffaloes took care of business early and often to take away any intrigue, plus the late-afternoon window put the FOX broadcast up against Alabama-Tennessee, Michigan-Illinois and other more compelling games. It actually signaled a drop-off from the 3.18 million viewers who tuned in for the Nebraska-Indiana Big Noon Kickoff showcase.
Sanders's squad is averaging 3.84 million viewers, a 49% decrease from last year at this time. There's also been far fewer pregame shows broadcasting from the site of their games and breathless attention has turned into pretty standard coverage.
One could surmise that the bloom is off the rose, but give credit to Sanders. His team is winning. It takes a 5-2 record into Saturday's game against Cincinnati and it's not outlandish to think Colorado could flirt with 10 victories on the season when all is said and done. Or things could spiral out of control and the Buffaloes could match last season's stumble across the finish line.
Sanders brings his own spotlight with him wherever he goes, but it has been dimmer this season. Perhaps the idea that he would care how many eyeballs are on him is insulting as he puts together an honest-to-goodness impressive campaign. Actually, winning will do more for the program than making headlines, so it's not like the dip in television interest is a bad thing. And at the end of the day, it makes a lot of sense. There are so many out there who tuned in to watch the train wreck. Now that Colorado is offering standard, quality football, it's less compelling.
So maybe this is a really good sign for the Buffaloes and Sanders, who—it seems outlandish to say—are actually flying a bit under the radar.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Deion Sanders and Colorado Are No Longer Ratings Gold.
