Dominiq Ponder death: Deion Sanders reveals his message to Colorado players after accident

Deion Sanders got choked up just reading Dominiq Ponder‘s name mere seconds into Friday’s offseason press conference, which he opened by discussing a candlelight vigil the Colorado football team held for their late teammate Thursday on Folsom Field.

“Ah, it’s hard to say his dern name,” Sanders said before a long pause. Sanders then announced the program will hold a Celebration of Life memorial service for Ponder at noon MT Saturday inside the school’s University Memorial Center in the Boulder campus. It will be livestreamed at the family’s request.

Ponder, 23, died in a single-vehicle wreck early Sunday morning in Boulder. The fatal accident occurred when the redshirt sophomore quarterback lost control of his 2023 Tesla Model 3 and struck a guardrail on Baseline Road in Boulder County, according to Colorado State Patrol.

“We don’t send a kid to college not to come back, and that’s the most painful thing that I’m dealing with,” Sanders continued. “… This was a walk-on kid that was a bonafide leader who ran our quarterback room up until his passing. We love him, we’re going to appreciate him, we’re going to celebrate him and we’re going to focus on the positive things that he brought to us. … He was one of my favorites.”

After completing his seven-minute opening statement that included updates on other Colorado athletic programs, Sanders went into detail about what he told his Buffaloes players following Ponder’s passing.

“We’ve got to keep going. We’ve got to keep going,” Sanders said. “We’re going to love him, we’re going to appreciate him, we’re going to uplift him. We’re going to support the family, friends, loved ones and everybody that associated with him. But we’ve got to keep going. Everybody’s dealing with something. … So I want those kids, … they’ve been wonderful. God have they been good. They’ve been so good and mature. And it don’t make you soft for a man to cry, it don’t make you soft for a man to show his emotions, so I want them to do that. So, if they feel it, alright, let’s go. Do you need a day off? Let me know, I’ve got you, because this ain’t no joke.

“For some of the players, this is the first time they’ve dealt with losing someone, and you’ve got to respect that. So I’m advising our coaching staff we’re going to push them on the field, but we’re going to love them just as hard.”