DENVER — Deion Sanders’ lawyers sure ain’t hard to find these days.
We kid, of course, but goodness gracias — this Colorado football season, which is slated to open on Sept. 3 in Atlanta against Georgia Tech, can’t get here quick enough for Buffs fans. Just so they’ll have something to talk about other than the latest round of reported subpoenas.
The college football wonks on the Grading The Week crew were already raising eyebrows with the news that the lawyer for an ex-security guard at Sanders’ private school, John Darjean, had attempted to serve papers to the Buffs football coach on campus in order to get him to testify in the bankruptcy trial of Sanders’ son, former CU safety Shilo Sanders.
The trial is slated to begin on Aug. 31, just four days before the Buffs’ opener against the Yellow Jackets, and concerns Darjean’s efforts to enforce a $11.89 million default judgment for damages arising from an altercation that occurred when Shilo Sanders was 15. Darjean alleges he suffered permanent injuries while trying to obtain the younger Sanders’ phone.
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While it remains to be seen whether Deion Sanders will testify during the week of the Buffs’ first game, a designer from Nebraska is also seeking damages in court from the elder Sanders over Coach Prime’s trademarks.
Actually, it’s the “trademark” part that has Alan Tipp, a graphic designer from Omaha, crying foul over the Buffs’ football coach.
According to documents filed in U.S. District Court, Tipp designed the now-famous “PRIME21” logo in 2011, which became synonymous with Sanders and CU football.
Tipp alleges in said documents that Sanders and his management team, SMAC Entertainment, took the “PRIME21” logo he designed in 2011 and attempted to cut him out of a cut on merchandise — and there was a lot of it — sold upon his arrival at CU.
In the filing, Tipp alleges that he signed a conditional agreement to forgo rights to the logo after a representative from SMAC Entertainment, Sam Morini, made promises that the designer would be “an integral part of the Sanders’ (sic) marketing and branding team”; that Tipp would serve as advisor for CU student-athletes and their marketing efforts; that he would collaborate with Nike on Sanders branded apparel and footwear; and would be “retained to design, brand and develop a marketing plan” for a line of Sanders-themed sunglasses using the “PRIME21” logo.
Tipp alleges that none of the above happened. He also contends in the documents that “Sanders and his representatives began evading Tipp” after the agreement was executed, and that in April 2023, SMAC told the designer that his “services were no longer needed” for the planned sunglasses launch.
In September 2023, Sanders partnered with Blenders Eyewear to produce signature sunglasses. The partnership garnered $1.2 million in pre-orders and reportedly generated nearly $5 million in sales within the first few days of release.
Tipp wants the court to render his agreement with Sanders to be nullified; for all Sanders’ and SMAC’s trademarks to be canceled; and seeks injunctive relief, as well as compensation of at least $75,000 plus legal costs. It’s probably not the best sign for a pivotal Year 4 of The Sanders Era when folks are throwing that kind of shade at Coach Prime before a ball’s even been snapped.
