Deion Sanders again expresses his displeasure with late kickoffs: “How stupid is that?”

Deion Sanders is again unhappy with Colorado's late kickoff times.

The Buffaloes host No. 18 Kansas State on Saturday night in a game that begins at 8:15 p.m. in Boulder. That's 10:15 p.m. ET. The game is scheduled to be televised at 7:00 p.m. ET as an ESPN nightcap to Florida and Tennessee.

“Who does that? Who has the power to sit up there and say, 'Yeah, I'll let them play at 8:15?'” Sanders asked rhetorically on his coach's show.

When Colorado radio announcer Mark Johnson informed Sanders that television networks largely dictate start times, Sanders asked, “How stupid is that?” before making his point.

“But it's not wise for TV executives to say, 'We're going to have this game at this time.' Because you think about eyeballs, you think about selling goods in the commercials. You think about all of this. Why would you say it at a time when half of America is asleep?”

This isn't the first time Sanders has expressed his displeasure with Colorado's late kickoffs. Around this time last season, he said it was the “stupidest thing ever invented in life” for games to start so late and said he was glad Colorado beat the Pac-12 and its numerous late ones leaves games.

However, the Big 12 has taken over the late-game mantle from the Pac-12. With Arizona, Arizona State and Utah also from the Pac-12 and BYU also a member of the conference, the Big 12 will be a regular late-night event in 2024. Kansas State is playing its second late-night road game of the season after the Wildcats' loss at BYU started even later. Week 4's game began at 10:30 p.m. ET.

In Week 6, Texas Tech and Arizona played a game that began at 11:00 p.m. ET on Fox. Next week, Oklahoma State visits BYU with a 10:15 p.m. ET kickoff on Friday and Utah hosts TCU with a 10:30 p.m. ET kickoff on Saturday. And if you think that's ridiculous — Sanders definitely is — Rutgers visits USC in a game that begins at 11 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 25, in New Jersey.

One of the reasons for the Big 12's westward expansion was the additional time slots for games. Conference games now begin on Saturdays between 12:00 p.m. ET and 11:00 p.m. ET. And TV channels are not dissatisfied with the inventory. ESPN and Fox understand that fewer people are watching football games late at night, but are happy that the program airs on weekends. At that time, more people will be interested in football than almost any other sport.