Coach Prime On BYU Before Alamo Bowl: ‘They’re Not Going Anywhere’

SAN ANTONIO – Entering Saturday’s 2024 Alamo Bowl, there is a lot of respect between BYU and Colorado.

That was evident during the joint press conference on Friday between Colorado’s Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders and BYU head coach Kalani Sitake.

The coaches who oversee a pair of Big 12 programs spoke to the media for almost 25 minutes on Friday inside the field-level press conference room at the Alamodome.

It’s the first meeting between BYU and Colorado since 1988, but it will be the first of many. The two programs are scheduled to meet as Big 12 Conference foes.

BYU will travel to Boulder in the 2025 season, and then the Buffs will return to Provo in 2027.

Coach Prime on BYU football before the Alamo Bowl

Coach Prime was asked what he looks forward to when facing BYU.

“Just the competitiveness, the competition, because they’re not going nowhere,” said Coach Prime. “We have to deal with these guys next year, the year after that. They’re not going anywhere. This man is not going anywhere.”

Kalani Sitake received a contract extension earlier this month that BYU refers to as a “long-term extension.” At the beginning of the press conference, Sitake pointed out that BYU and Colorado share the theme of being teams that “no one predicted” they would be in.

Entering the season, BYU was picked to finish 13th in the Big 12, while Colorado was picked to finish 11th.

Both teams finished tied for first place in the league with 7-2 records, but due to tiebreakers, they missed the Big 12 Championship Game. In 2024, they were 10-2 and 9-3 overall, respectively.

Coach Prime continued on BYU, “They have this attitude, this intellect, this intelligence. His team embodies who he is as a man. That is a daunting task. Our kids are going to have to play smart; they’re going to have to be disciplined.”

Kalani Sitake praised the intelligence of Colorado

Kalani Sitake praised Coach Prime’s star-studded squad, led by Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter, that goes beyond the surface level acknowledgment of their talent.

Kalani and Coach Prime pic.twitter.com/4uEBQYuh4D

— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) December 27, 2024

“I think sometimes when people talk about great talent, they forget the fact they have intelligence, too,” Sitake said. “When great talent matched with great football IQ and intelligence, and leadership qualities and love of the game, it’s dangerous.

“You look at the leadership that they have; I keep talking about it; Deion has been manifesting this for a long time, the success he had, Heisman Trophy winner, what he started at Colorado. I think a lot of people have to give him his credit, intelligence, his ability to kind of put it together and lead it.”

No. 17 BYU vs. No. 23 Colorado

2024 Alamo Bowl

Date: Saturday, December 28th, 2024

Kickoff: 5:30 p.m. (MST)

TV: ABC

Radio: KSL NewsRadio (102.7 FM, 1160 AM — Extended pregame begins at Noon)

Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.

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