Deion Sanders (Photo by Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)
The Colorado Buffaloes enjoyed a bounce-back win over Colorado State on Saturday night to go 2-1 after their disappointing loss to Nebraska earlier this month. But they’re now in the spotlight for a less-than-positive reason.
A report from August revealed that a former Colorado staffer had tried to source NIL money from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, raising plenty of eyebrows.
“I even went to Saudi Arabia and got a meeting with the Saudis, who were interested in pursuing business,” the staffer, Trevor Reilly, said in his resignation email. “I have email receipts to prove it, and you guys let it fall flat on its face.”
The advent of NIL has completely changed the college football landscape, with wild deals happening all over the place, yet it was still surprising to learn that the Buffs might have tried getting funding from Saudi Arabia.
A former Colorado special teams coordinator, Trevor Reilly, spent time in the Middle East this past holiday season trying to secure NIL funding from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund
(via Jason Jones, Sports Illustrated) pic.twitter.com/dgmj4Yg03Q
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) August 22, 2024
It now appears that Reilly wasn’t lying, as the receipts are dropping, with Matt brown citing an email in his Extra Points newsletter.
“Hello, my name is Trevor Reilly. I am a football coach for an American football team from University of Colorado. I represent the interest of Coach Prime and the University of Colorado,” it reads.
“We are looking for a partnership deal to promote your country in exchange for some marketing money. Please reach out with any questions. My phone number is (redacted). The figures in this pitch deck are for private business.
“If we sit down we can negotiate and talk about what we can do for each other. I think we can do great things for your country and promote visiting Saudi Arabia.”
NEW EXTRA POINTS:
Hey, remember that former Colorado football coach that tried to raise NIL money from Saudi Arabia?
I filed a FOIA to see his pitch. Aaaaand here it is:https://t.co/eZqVggwm9p
— Matt Brown (@MattBrownEP) September 16, 2024
According to Reilly, the email was sent while he was in Amman, Jordan. He claims to have been visiting Jordanian officials to try to broker NIL affairs there, too.
The Colorado Buffaloes Have Denied Knowledge Of Reilly’s Exploits
Colorado and their top NIL collective, 5430 Alliance, have denied Reilly’s claims, insisting the former staffer acted alone.
“We want to clarify that Trevor Reilly has never been authorized or directed to speak or advocate on behalf of 5430 Alliance in Saudi Arabia,” they said in a statement. “Since our launch in March 2024, all funding and initiatives have been managed solely within domestic channels and are entirely unrelated to Mr. Reilly or his work. Any claims suggesting otherwise are unfounded and patently false.”
Unless Reilly can prove he was tasked with securing Saudi funds, Colorado can continue to claim he was acting solo. But we now know that contact was indeed made.
