Being a college football coach is all Mike Sanford has ever known. After all, his father, Mike Sanford Sr., was a college coach before Mike was even born.

Not only did Mike grow up moving from city to city with his father’s career, when he went to Boise State, he was the backup quarterback where he got used to a headset and clipboard. He didn’t mind either one, in fact he loved it.

As soon as Mike graduated, he got on as a GA with his dad’s staff at UNLV. He didn’t stick to Mike Sr.’s tree for long. His career took to him to stops with Standford (twice), Yale, Western Kentucky (twice), Boise St, Notre Dame, Utah State, Minnesota and finally the University of Colorado. He was hired to be the Offensive Coordinator for Karl Dorrell in 2022, but when Karl got fired after an 0-5 start, he became the interim head coach.

When he wasn’t retained by the new staff at CU, Mike and his family decided to grow some roots in Colorado and give coaching a break. He’s taken time to reflect and is starting to find a new passion for being on radio and TV as an analyst.