Deion Sanders Stars in New DirecTV Ad Campaign

Deion Sanders’ impact as a top-level college football coach is a topic of debate, particularly after his Colorado Buffaloes finished with a 4-8 record in his debut FBS season last year. However, Sanders has undeniably made an impressive mark in terms of public prominence. This influence is now extending with a starring role in new DirecTV advertisements.

Last fall, Sanders was named Sports Illustrated ’s “Sportsman of the Year,” despite his team’s struggles. His involvement brought massive attention and ratings to the Buffaloes, especially during their initial 3-0 start.

Beyond the field, Sanders has been a central figure in the Amazon Coach Prime docuseries on Prime Video and has made regular appearances on various radio and TV shows. His approach to social media and his often testy relationship with traditional media have kept him in the headlines. He’s also notable for his ad campaigns, such as the one with Nick Saban for Aflac.

Sanders is now appearing in a new advertisement campaign with DirecTV, featuring animated pigeons Frank and Bobby. These characters are voiced by Henry Winkler and Steve Buscemi, respectively, highlighting the brand’s collaboration with prominent figures. The campaign aims to promote DirecTV’s satellite-free Gemini devices, focusing on making it easy for consumers to find the sports content they want to stream.

The first “Coach” ad shows Sanders’ “Coach Prime” pigeon character donning a cowboy hat and a gold whistle.

Additionally, a 15-second version of an accompanying “Game Plan” ad also features Sanders:

According to a DirecTV release, the spots demonstrate how users can easily access a wide variety of football content using the upgraded Your TV streaming interface on a DirecTV Gemini device, without the need for a satellite dish.

“America fell in love with Bobby and Frank when we made them the stars of our nationwide campaign earlier this year to educate consumers about DirecTV’s satellite-free availability,” said Vince Torres, chief marketing officer at DirecTV. “With Coach Prime, we’ve added a new confident and astute bird to the flock who expresses his excitement over how DirecTV delivers an unparalleled watching experience to sports fans.”

The “Game Plan” spot leans into the vast array of easily accessible college football games available on DirecTV. It humorously addresses the common pain point non-DirecTV customers face when they can’t find the game they want to watch, an issue DirecTV alleviates.

Both of these ads are slated for upcoming national ad buys from DirecTV, including during college and NFL games. This exposure is likely to boost Sanders’ fame even further. However, it is intriguing to see Sanders featured so prominently by a brand given some of the controversy surrounding him at Colorado to date.

Working with Sanders seems logical for DirecTV considering his high profile, but the true measure will be the on-field results he delivers this fall and beyond. How the conversation about Sanders as a rights-enhancer and advertising focal point evolves will be interesting to watch.

Source: Awful Announcing, DirecTV on YouTube