“Prayin’ Coach Prime”: SI's 2023 Sportsperson of the Year - but Why?

“Seest thou a man diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings;” Proverbs 22:29.

How can a first-year college football coach who tallied a 4-8 season record - whose team lost its last six games - be named Sports Illustrated’s 2023 Sportsperson of the Year?

Call it the “Prime Effect Show,” starring Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders.?

“In less than a year, Coach Prime has not only transformed a moribund Colorado football program, . . . He’s also breathed fresh life into the campus and transformed a community,” the magazine cited.

His combination of past athletic accolades, mediagenic swag, and megawatt smile make him a rock star.?

In my view, however, SI’s highest honor was granted Sanders due to his right-now touchdowns of fanfare, family, and faith.

Fanfare?

Known previously as “Neon Deion,” Sanders became a Pro Football Hall of Famer and Super Bowl champion; he also played in the 1992 World Series, hitting .533 with five stolen bases.

With 2023 as his first season coaching the Colorado Buffaloes, the university reported:

• Deion Sanders, Colorado Have Drawn Estimated $90.55M in Media Coverage, School Says;
• A 2,544% jump in sales at its online team store; and
• Every home game in 50,183-seat Folsom Field was sold out for the first time in school history.

And these Prime kudos were gained without fumbling family face time.

Family

Most fathers leave their families when they go to work, but Sanders brought his to Colorado: a daughter, three sons, a sister, his mother, and even Gunner, his Belgian Malinois dog. For this, he’s thankful and appreciative.

“How in the world can I not be thankful and appreciative of where I am? They have afforded us the luxury of calling this place home, and we’ve absolutely loved it,” SI quoted.

Coach Prime’s spirit of appreciation and thankfulness flows from his faith walk. “I don’t believe you can be at your optimum without your faith. Sports is sports, it’s a game. My faith is everything. It’s the gas that propels the courage, the truth, keeps me going. It’s the wind, it’s the wings, it’s the air that pumps into my lungs that provokes me to live. Faith is everything, ”Deion Sanders Vocal About His Christian Faith As He Seeks Success at Colorado.?

When you and I mix our faith, family, and fans all together, like Prime we will become someone’s Person of the Year.