Deion Sanders health update: How 'unspecified' issue is keeping Colorado head coach away from football program

Teddy Ricketson

Deion Sanders health update: How 'unspecified' issue is keeping Colorado head coach away from football program image

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders has had a big offseason. He helped to host a Buffaloes-specific Pro Day leading into the 2025 NFL Draft. Sanders watched as his son was seen as a top prospect in the draft, but then fell to the fifth round. He was scheduled to speak at a recent conference, but was unable to do so due to an undisclosed health issue. 

Sanders was due to speak at the Sickle Cell Disease Research and Educational Symposium on June 8, but had to cancel. The event put out a statement saying, "Due to an unavoidable last-minute scheduling change, our originally scheduled Foundation Keynote Speaker, Deion Sanders 'Coach Prime,' is unable to attend. We are grateful for his support and look forward to future opportunities to welcome him."

Sanders' son, Deion Sanders Jr., confirmed during an Instagram Live appearance that his father is going through a health issue that has him at home.

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Here is what we know about Sanders' latest health issue. 

Deion Sanders health update

It hasn't been confirmed what Sanders is currently dealing with, but Deion Jr. said that his dad will, "Tell y'all soon enough what he's going through, what he went through."

One concern is that the elder Sanders may be dealing with another blood clot. He developed three femoral artery thromboses in his lower leg in 2022. Sanders needed surgery to correct the issue, and it resulted in the amputation of two of his toes. The blood clots came back in 2023, and Colorado's head coach needed to have a procedure to relieve clots in both legs, causing him to miss Pac-12 media days that year. 

Sanders mentioned a health issue on a podcast appearance with Asante Samuel in May, per USA Today, but it wasn't explained. According to Deion Jr., they are going to remain in Texas until his father is healthy enough to head to Boulder. Sanders is not in Colorado for the school's annual summer football camps that recently got underway. 

Sanders provided a semi-update on his own X account on Wednesday. The Colorado head coach said that he is good to go, and will provide an update when he gets back to Boulder.

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Where is Deion Sanders?

The Sanders have a house in Texas. Before getting into college coaching, Coach Prime was a coordinator for Shedeur and Shilo's high school team in Cedar Hill, Texas. This is likely where the former NFL cornerback's permanent residence is. 

Deion Jr said on Instagram live that he doesn't know when they will head back to Colorado. "When we get back to Boulder, I don't know. I'm waiting until my dad leaves. When he leaves, then I'll go. Until then, I'm going to sit here with him."

Teddy Ricketson

Teddy Ricketson is a Digital Content Producer at The Sporting News. He joined the team in 2024 after spending the last three years writing for Vox Media as part of its DK Nation/Network team. Teddy does his best to support the South Carolina Gamecocks and Carolina Panthers, but tends to have more fun cheering on the Atlanta Braves. In his free time, he loves spending time with his wife, Brooke, and their two dogs, Bo and Hootie.