Deion Sanders Fining Colorado Players’ NIL Money For Missed Events, Sparking Legal Questions

Deion Sanders is already making headlines just a few weeks into preparation for the 2026 college football season, where he is essentially docking NIL earnings from his Colorado players in the form of monetary fines aimed at discipline. 

In his first introduction meeting with his new team, Coach Prime took the opportunity to introduce his players to their coaching staff, which included a number of new faces. 

But, he also announced a policy for Colorado players that has already garnered unwanted attention from those within college athletics. 

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In his remarks, Deion Sanders made it be known that he would be fining his players for a number of different infractions that could transpire within the football building or athletic complex. Is this legal in the current college athletics landscape? 

Well, not really. But who's going to stop him? The NCAA?

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Since NIL earnings are not allowed to be performance-based, his monetary fine policy is already turning heads around the country. 

But, it's not as if schools aren't already doing this. A lot of athletic programs will withhold academic bonuses from players if they were to miss class, or even dock their pay due to missed events pertaining to NIL. 

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So, it's not as if Deion Sanders is reshaping college sports, he's just putting his own spin on the current era. 

How much is the Colorado head coach prepared to dock players for missing certain events, or causing problems within the football building? According to a report from Yahoo Sports, the bills could add up. 

-Late to meeting or film session: $400

-No show meeting or film session: $2,000

-Late to strength & conditioning: $1,000

-No show strength & conditioning: $1,500

-Late to treatment: $1,000

-No-show treatment: $1,500

-Late to practice: $500

-No-show practice: $2,500

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I mean, that's actually pretty fair given how much money some of these athletes make for a season. But, I would imagine only half the roster could actually afford these monetary penalties over the course of a football season. 

"I like the struggle. I like the journey. … We’re in the process right now. But I need men. I don’t need boys. I don’t need blamers, or people that are on a list. I don’t need naysayers. I don’t need people who sold this court amongst other men who talk about the program, who talk about this. And I’m not having it this year. Ain’t no way in the world, because we’re winning whether you like it or not."

There will certainly be detractors, and I would imagine this could turn into a problem for Deion Sanders if not framed in the right way moving forward. 

If these athletes are not employees, how are you going to dock them pay like they are? 

As previously mentioned, other programs have found loopholes in the system based off academic failures, and I've been told schools have implemented ways to dock NIL pay through backchannel agreements. 

So, maybe Deion Sanders is not afraid to make it publicly known that he will take a piece of your NIL earnings if you fail to meet the standards at Colorado. 

Though I promise you this will be heavily discussed moving forward into the future of college athletics.