The Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year award dates back to 1954, when the first person given the prestigious award was Sir Roger Bannister, who set a British record for the first sub-4-minute mile during the 1952 Olympics.
Throughout the years, coaches, athletes, and teams have received this prestigious Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year award. PGA Golfer Tiger Woods received the award in 2000 for winning three major golf championships. NBA champions, Los Angeles Lakers Lebron James, and Golden State Warriors Stephen Curry, both received the award, along with former University of Tennessee Women’s Basketball Head Coach Pat Summit and former Duke University Men’s Head Basketball Coach Mike Krzyzewski have graced the cover for their team’s performance in college basketball.
After reviewing the list of recipients, every athlete, coach, or team was rewarded for their accomplishments within their sports. This year’s recipient is a former Major League Baseball player and NFL Hall of Famer, a two-time Super Bowl Champion, who played in a Baseball World Series game and an NFL football game on the same day. former Jackson State University and now Colorado University Head Football Coach Deion Sanders, who continues to make strides and bring awareness to Historical Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to bring change in college sports, resources, recruiting, financial literacy, and athletes compensated for their Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL).
MORE: Making the Right College Choice for High School Athletes
Coach Sanders left Jackson State with a record of 27-6, winning back-to-back Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Championships. His ability to galvanize athletes to believe in their abilities and, when the opportunity presents itself, take advantage of the situation and make it work to accomplish all things that some would deem impossible.
The Colorado Buffaloes’ early success at the beginning of the 2023 football season, starting 3-0, showed their resilience to remove the stigma that Buffs football is unable to recruit at a high level like the early 90s teams. Coach Prime inherited a 1-11 team last season, is changing the way future recruits, analysts, and fans talk about them. Coach Prime’s Colorado Buffaloes football team has the athletes to compete this season, and the team is going to show competitors that they are going to compete each week.
The Buffs’ 2023 football season ended below the expectations Coach Prime had for the team. The Buffs fan base needs to get prepared for what’s to come from the Buffs football team next season because Coach Prime’s competitive nature will not allow his team to be subpar next season.