Colorado Buffaloes head coach and NFL legend Deion Sanders has found himself in hot water after his longtime videographer, Christopher Neely, shared an anecdote.
Neely, who goes by the name “Uncle Neely” on social media, has worked with Deion Sanders since the early years of Coach Prime’s tenure as the coach of the Jackson State University football team. As Sanders joined Colorado State as the head coach in late 2022, Uncle Neely followed.
The long-time associate has landed 59-year-old Deion Sanders in a controversy Monday. In a podcast appearance, Neely claimed that Deion Sanders offered some of his critics $50,000 not to talk about the pitfalls of his tenure with the Colorado Buffaloes.
The claim has only made matters worse for Sanders as he and the Buffaloes look to recover from the bottom of the Big 12, turning around a five-game losing streak.
What Uncle Neely claimed
Christopher Neely, a.k.a. Uncle Neely, appeared on the college football show BuffBoys Live over the weekend. Neely, describing how Sanders’ critic purportedly make money from attacking him. He recalled how Coach Prime allegedly once told some of them that he would give them $50,000 to each to not talk about him for a year.
“For the most part, the people that attack him wouldn’t be making the money they were making if he wasn’t here to attack,” Uncle Neely said. “Which is why he told some of them, ‘Hey man, let’s just do this. I give you $50,000 to not mention my name for a year.’ And ain’t nobody took the deal yet.”
Neely appeared to have shared the anecdote to describe how analysts like to talk about Sanders and not as allegations that the Colorado head coach offered money to silence critics.
Who is Christopher Neely, aka Uncle Neely?
Christopher Neely is a long-time sports media personality. Known primarily as Deion Sanders’ videographer, records show that Neely is associated with the HBCU-Pro Sports Media Association. A wing of the Historically Black College and University (HBCU).
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A Jackson State alum, Neely joined Deion Sanders as a behind-the-scenes videographer when Coach Prime joined the football team in 2020. According to an August 2023 profile of Uncle Neely on The Athletic, he formed a professional bond with Sanders that holds strong till date as Coach Prime joined Colorado.
The profile credited Uncle Neely with behind-the-scenes videos of Deion Sanders that are wildly popular with the NFL legend’s fans.