Head coach Deion Sanders answers questions during the post-game press conference after the game against the University of Cincinnati at Folsom Field on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024. (Clementine Miller/CU Independent)
The University of Colorado-Boulder’s Athletic Department, in concurrence with Deion ‘Coach Prime’ Sanders, has decided that censorship is an acceptable form of punishment for a columnist who criticizes its program. CU, a public research institution that fundamentally values and welcomes diverse opinions on its campus, has decided that dissenting views on Coach Prime are not welcome. In an era where the line between free speech and hate speech is frequently debated, the censorship of a reporter intensifies these conversations. Longtime Denver Post columnist Sean Keeler was banned by CU Athletics and Prime from asking questions about the football program on Aug. 23.
“After a series of sustained, personal attacks on the football program and specifically Coach Prime, the CU Athletic Department, in conjunction with the football program, has decided not to take questions from Denver Post columnist Sean Keeler at football-related events,” said CU Boulder Athletics in a statement.
The ban is reportedly indefinite and comes in response to overtly critical articles written by Keeler denouncing Coach Prime and his coaching tactics. The decision has been widely criticized, especially considering Coach Prime is currently one of the highest-paid state employees in Colorado.
A head football coach at a Power four Division I football program must take the hard-hitting questions head-on and take them with a profound sense of professionalism. Considering a five-year, 29.5 million dollar contract awarded to Coach Prime upon his arrival in Boulder, professionalism and accountability are put at a premium, particularly for a coach who preaches kindness.
“While Sanders continues to preach love and joy, he sets the agenda and those who do not support him are publicly ignored. That’s Censorship … The administration is willing to support Sanders’ antics because he is the face of the program, and without him, there is no national interest,” said The Record in response to Keeler’s ban.
CU has given a coach who has a combined losing record through 1.5 seasons free reign on its program and the university that he represents on a national scale. It creates a dangerous ethical standard when a public institution’s Athletic Department bars certain members of the media from covering its program, all because its head football coach does not like the outlet or journalist.
Despite the aforementioned pushback from critics, the rhetoric that Keeler was employing to critique Coach Prime can be argued as reasonable grounds for his removal. Keeler published a series of articles calling Coach Prime ‘Deposition Deion,’ ‘A False Prophet,’ ‘the Bruce Lee of B.S.,’ ‘Harold Hill in designer shades,’ and described the hype around Coach Prime as ‘the Deion-Kool Aid’ and ‘a circus.’
Some of this language used by Keeler is arguably racist, extremely derogatory and unquestionably deeply offensive. It toes the line between criticism and outright hatred. The Athletics Department stood up for its head coach and determined that kind of language was inexcusable for a columnist to utilize in its opinions of its program. Moreover, Coach Prime stood up for himself and denounced that kind of hateful rhetoric permeating his program, which is arguably a fair response in light of the severity of the comments from Keeler.
Additionally, another support for Coach Prime and CU Athletics’ justification for banning Keeler lies in the language of Prime’s contract. Sanders’s contract has a clause that gives him the right to speak only to “mutually agreed upon media.” The contract clearly gives Coach Prime jurisdiction over which media can ask him questions, which proves he was acting well within his rights.
Furthermore, the Athletics Department was acting as contractually obligated, only permitting media that both parties agreed upon. It can reasonably be concluded that all parties were acting with the liberties they are afforded and nothing more should be made on the matter besides a begrudging reporter spewing hate-fueled rhetoric.
Coach Prime has thrust CU into the national spotlight. His presence in Boulder last season fueled the highest college football viewership after 2:15 a.m. in ESPN history against Colorado State. With the widespread attention comes widespread criticism. Coach Prime has dealt with criticism his whole life and denying media access to his program is questionable and exceptionally unethical.
CU Athletics has not responded with a comment.
Contact Guest Writer John Ewald at John.EwaldJr@Colorado.EDU
