Colorado head coach Deion Sanders during the Buffaloes' spring game at Folsom Field.

Colorado football's season opener will serve as a return to normalcy for coach Deion Sanders, in some ways, following an eventful offseason.

Since the Buffaloes' last regular-season game in 2024, Sanders watched two-way star Travis Hunter collect the Heisman Trophy, his son Shedeur Sanders endure a dramatic fall in the 2025 NFL Draft and dealt with health issues of his own.

Sanders, 57, announced on July 28 at a Colorado press conference that he had been diagnosed with bladder cancer this offseason, and is now cancer-free. Sanders had been away from the Buffaloes' team during the spring as he recovered in his Texas home.

In his first two seasons with Colorado, Sanders led the program to a 13-12 record, including a 9-4 mark in 2024, the best season for the program since 2016. Sanders will begin his fourth season leading the Buffaloes when they take on Georgia Tech at 8 p.m. ET on Aug. 29 from Folsom Field in Boulder, Colorado.

Here's the latest on Sanders' health:

Deion Sanders cancer update

On July 28, Sanders revealed he had been diagnosed with bladder cancer earlier in the year. According to a documentary shot by Deion Sanders Jr.’s media company, the diagnosis came on April 14, from Dr. Janet Kukreja of the University of Colorado Cancer Center.

In the press conference with his doctors, he also revealed he was cancer-free and cured after having his bladder removed in a surgery in May. He also had a "neobladder," which was made for him from his small intestine, created.

"I am pleased to report that the results of the surgery are that he is cured from the cancer," Colorado assistant athletic trainer Lauren Askevold said at the July 28 press conference.

During the press conference, Askevold revealed that the cancer was “very high grade,” and was found during a check-up and CT scans on his foot for an update on the compartment syndrome on his left leg. She also revealed the tumor had moved through the bladder wall, but not into the muscle layer. Sanders' primary doctor referred him to a urologist.

Sanders opted to have his bladder removed rather than receive continued treatment, saying, "I didn’t want to be running down to the hospital once a week." He also added, "I can't pee like I used to pee."

According to Kukreja, had Sanders chosen to keep his bladder and get regular treatments over the next three years, there was a 50% chance of recurrence.

Sanders took his diagnosis and recovery as a way to warn other men to make sure they are getting regular checkups to avoid the worst-case scenarios with cancer. He said he lost about 25 pounds during his bout with cancer.

"Men, everybody, get checked out because if it wasn’t for me getting tested for something else, they wouldn’t have stumbled on this," Sanders said. "Make sure you get the right care because without wonderful people like this, I probably wouldn’t be sitting here today, because it grew so expeditiously."

Will Deion Sanders coach vs Georgia Tech?

As reported by USA TODAY's Brent Schrotenboer, retirement was never an option for Sanders throughout the process. As such, Sanders is fully expected to be on the sidelines for the Buffaloes' 2025 season opener against the Yellow Jackets.

The biggest question Sanders had about his coaching career was whether he would be able to get through an entire game.

"Can I make it through a game?" Sanders said on a podcast with her former Dallas Cowboys teammate Michael Irvin on July 28. "... I know I got halftime, but can I make it through a game? What if there’s a long quarter? OK, so I start thinking I gotta get a Porta Potty for the sideline."

Sanders will have on Depend garments during games and, as he noted, portable toilets on the sideline.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Deion Sanders health update: Colorado coach returns after bladder cancer diagnosis

Reporting by Ehsan Kassim, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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