Deion Sanders again expresses his dissatisfaction with late kickoff: ‘How stupid is that?’

Deion Sanders is once again dissatisfied with Colorado’s late kickoff times.

The Buffaloes host No. 18 Kansas State on Saturday night in a game that starts in Boulder at 8:15 p.m. That’s 10:15 PM ET. The game will air at 7:00 PM ET as ESPN’s nightcap, after Florida and Tennessee.

“Who does that? Who has the power to sit there and say, ‘Yes, I’m going to let them play at 8:15?'” Sanders asked rhetorically during his coaches show.

When Colorado radio announcer Mark Johnson informed Sanders that TV networks largely dictate start times, Sanders asked, “How stupid is that?” before stating his point.

“But it’s not smart for television executives to say, ‘We’re going to put this game on right now.’ Because you think about eyeballs, you think about selling merchandise in the commercials. You think about all that. Why would you put it at a time when half of America is asleep?”

This isn’t the first time Sanders has expressed his displeasure with Colorado’s late kickoff. This time last season, he said it was “the stupidest thing ever invented” for games to start so late, and he said he was happy to see Colorado leave the Pac-12 and its numerous late games.

However, the Big 12 has taken up the late game mantle from the Pac-12. With Arizona, Arizona State and Utah also coming over from the Pac-12 and BYU also a member of the conference, the Big 12 is a regular fixture in the late night game in 2024. Kansas State is already playing its second late-night road game of the season after the Wildcats’ loss at BYU started even later. That Week 4 match started at 10:30 PM ET.

In Week 6, Texas Tech and Arizona played in a game that started at 11:00 PM ET on Fox. Next week, Oklahoma State visits BYU in a 10:15 PM ET kickoff on Friday and Utah hosts TCU in a 10:30 PM ET kickoff on Saturday. And if you think that’s ridiculous — Sanders certainly does — Rutgers visits USC in a game that starts in New Jersey on Friday, October 25 at 11 p.m.

One of the reasons for the Big 12’s westward expansion was the additional time slots for games. In the conference, games will now begin on Saturday sometime between 12:00 PM ET and 11:00 PM ET. And TV networks aren’t unhappy with the inventory. ESPN and Fox understand that fewer people are watching late-night football games, but they are happy with the weekend programming. More people will tune into football than any other sport during that time.