Colorado athletic director Rick George is stepping down next year to take on a new advisory role at the university.
George’s tenure will be largely defined by his hiring of football coach Deion Sanders to revive the program.
In his new position, George will focus on revenue-generating initiatives for the athletic department.
Colorado athletic director Rick George said on the day that he announced the hiring of Deion Sanders that Sanders would be the last football coach he hired for the Buffaloes.
George, 65, had already hired two football coaches that didn’t work out before Sanders. Now George is stepping down as athletic director next year to take a new position at the university as emeritus athletic director and special adviser to the university chancellor.
“It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve as athletic director for the University of Colorado for the last 13 years, but after considerable thought and discussions with my family dating back to last spring, I have decided it is time for new leadership to guide the department,” George said in a statement Thursday Nov. 13.
The announcement said he was stepping down as athletic director at the end of the current academic year, which runs through June 2026.
Rick George’s tenure defined by Deion Sanders hiring
His tenure in charge of Colorado athletics still will be defined by his hiring of Sanders, who revived a football program that had hit rock-bottom under George’s watch. But Sanders’ team since has struggled after going 9-4 last season. The Buffs are 3-7 this year in Sanders’ third season in Boulder.
George introduced Sanders as the school’s new head coach on Dec. 4, 2022, installing him to resuscitate a football program that went 1-11 in 2022. George previously hired Mel Tucker, who left after one football season in 2019 to become coach at Michigan State. To replace Tucker, George hired Karl Dorrell, who went 8-15 in three seasons before his firing in 2022.
On the day Sanders was introduced as Colorado’s next head coach, George was asked if he was confident he wouldn’t need to hire another coach in another few years, in case Sanders left or didn’t pan out.
“I won’t be here that long from the standpoint of I’m going to be here as long as Coach Prime is here,” George said that day. “He’s got a five-year deal, and so I’ll be here that long at least, Beyond that, I’m not gonna hire another coach, and I don’t think we’ll have to.”
He said in a statement Thursday he made this announcement now to give the university time to find his successor. He also mentioned Sanders, who had developed a special rapport with George.
“I also wanted to time my announcement so that I could support Coach Prime and our football team this season, which I’m looking forward to continuing in my new role,” the statement said.
Rick George to help with ‘vital’ revenue-generation
George was hired at Colorado in 2013, taking over for previous athletic director Mike Bohn. His current contract extension was approved just days after Sanders’ electric debut as Colorado’s head coach in September 2023 and set to expire in June 2027 at a starting annual pay rate of $1.1 million.
This move ends his tenure as athletic director one year earlier than his contract term, but it includes a provision that he can transition to another position before then upon mutual agreement with the university.
One of his biggest accomplishments was spearheading the building of the UCHealth Champions Center, a showcase facility for Colorado athletics. The university described it as the product of “the most successful fundraising campaign in department history,” which generated $100 million for the project.
In 2023, he helped make the decision to rejoin the Big 12 Conference amid uncertainty about the future of the Pac-12, which Colorado had joined in 2011. The Colorado football team finished with a 27-76 record in 12 seasons in the Pac-12 but started its return to the Big 12 with a first-place tie to finish the regular season in 2024.
Financial issues still pressured Colorado athletics, as they do for many universities in the new era of college sports. George’s department has had to rely on significant university support in recent years to help fund it. In September, the university said it was “TBD,” or to be determined, when asked how it would pay for rising expenses during the current fiscal year, including the new five-year contract the school gave Sanders in March worth more than $10 million annually.
The news release of George’s change in positions said he will “continue to assist CU athletics in his new role, participating in revenue-generating initiatives for the department during a time when revenue generation is vital for success.”
Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com