Deion Sanders became the head coach of the Colorado Buffaloes a few years ago, and he has completely changed the dynamic of the program. While 2025 has gotten off to a rough start, recruiting is way up, applications to attend Colorado are way up, and he brings an excitement to a team who desperately needed it.
However, Deion Sanders isn’t is real name.
The Buffaloes’ head coach reveals his real legal name is not Deion Sanders
The name Deion Sanders is known to most sports fans, but they may not be aware that he spelled it differently:
Fans received a reminder when the Colorado head coach appeared on the New Heights podcast this week. Travis and Jason Kelce asked if it’s true that his legal first name is actually Dion.
“Where you guys getting this stuff from?” Sanders asked. “That is true.”
Sanders explained the change by encouraging the Kelce brothers to finish singing the “Old MacDonald Had a Farm” nursery rhyme. The “E-I-E-I-O” spelling compelled him to tweak his name.
“E-I-O. So, it was D-E-I-O-N. I got it from Old MacDonald,” Sanders said. “That’s the way I spell it. On my birth certificate, it’s D-I-O-N, but I’ve always spelled it D-E-I-O-N.”
Sanders credited the Kelce brothers for their thorough investigation, and they said they picked up the tidbit from a producer nicknamed “Turtle” who worked with Sanders on the NFL Network.
Then again, anyone could have figured out his legal first name is Dion by visiting his Wikipedia page.
It’s also not the first time Sanders has discussed the spelling change publicly. Eight years ago, he said the discrepancy has occasionally caused logistical issues.
“I have to show credit cards to accompany that when I go through the airport,” Sanders said on The Rich Eisen Show. “Every once in a while, someone will (say), ‘You have to go to the front desk. This is not your name.’ I just look at them.”
Sanders also said he would intentionally sign autographs for fans using a dollar sign in place of an S to differentiate it from his business signature. This benefited him when he was presented with a forged document signed with the dollar sign during divorce hearings.
Old MacDonald has left a lasting legacy in the Sanders family. Sanders kept the altered spelling for his son, Deion Sanders Jr., and daughter, Deiondra.
Whether you call him Deion, Dion, or Coach Prime, Sanders is leaving a mark on college football after his Hall of Fame playing career. Yet the Buffaloes have followed a 9-4 campaign by starting 2-2 ahead of Saturday’s game against BYU.
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