Deion Sanders is clearly worth way more to Colorado University than the $29.5 million the school will pay him over the next five years. Through his first three games, Coach Prime has turned Boulder, Colorado, which last year was home to one of the worst Power 5 college football teams of all-time, into the center of the sports universe.

The school has commissioned a study to better-understand Deion’s impact. University spokesperson Steve Hurlbert said that the school believes the exposure Sanders has provided is worth north of $90 million to the school.

That number is measured in ticket and merchandise sales as well as the advertising value of the time ESPN, FOX, CBS and others have spent either talking about the football team and its coach or broadcasting its games.

“I’m so happy for our students, alumni and fans who have all been savoring this incredible experience,” Chancellor Phil DiStefano said in a statement. “Most of all, I’m immensely proud of our coaches and student-athletes, who have demonstrated incredible poise amidst all of this attention and whose hard work is the reason we’re enjoying such a successful start to the season.” 

Hurlburt noted that the school issued 848 media credentials for the Buffaloes’ home opener against Nebraska. He expects that number to be dwarfed by the amount that will be issued for their game against USC next week.

Every Colorado has sold out, but the bigger impact of the media exposure can be seen in alumni donations according to The Daily Camera. The paper notes that donors gave over $2 million more to the school in fiscal year 2023 than they did the previous fiscal year.

After news broke that WWE’s SmackDown on Friday nights would be returning to USA Network next year, FOX seems poised to fill the void in that time slot with college sports.

The writing appeared to be on the wall for FOX earlier this year that WWE would be seeking a new partner for SmackDown. FOX CEO Lachlan Murdoch said in the spring that the network hadn’t engaged in rights talks with WWE. But that was at a time when WWE was in the middle of working on its recently completed merger with Endeavor.

Big Ten football and Big East basketball look to be the products that FOX will put on its airwaves in primetime on Fridays.

Given the way things currently work, with WWE on the big network on Friday nights, any college football or basketball scheduled would air on either FS1 or FS2. That will change starting October 2024.

ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the New York Yankees game on Thursday night, and while it didn’t rival rapper 50 Cent‘s or Gary “Baba Booey” Dell’Abate‘s first pitches at Mets games several years ago as some of the worst ever, Stephen A. didn’t throw a strike.

Smith admittedly isn’t a big baseball guy, and makes it very clear on First Take that he’s not going to dedicate a ton of air time to talking about the sport. He did hype himself up talking about getting his moment on the show Thursday morning.

But at Yankee Stadium, Stephen A. took to the pitcher’s mound and toed the rubber before rearing back and throwing. Smith’s pitch didn’t quite make it to the plate, bouncing about five feet in front of home.

Sports media had plenty of reaction to the pitch.

Stephen A. had his own way of putting what kind of throw he delivered.

First Take moderator Molly Qerim added to those trolling Smith.