On the day she turned 100 years old, University of Colorado superfan Peggy Coppom had a busy schedule of public appearances planned for herself:
At about 11 a.m. local time, she appeared with Colorado football coach Deion Sanders at his weekly news conference in Boulder. That’s where he announced a new line of apparel is being launched in her honor with proceeds going to benefit her and her family.
“She is 100 years old,” Sanders said. “That is to be applauded.”
Later in the day, her church planned to throw her a birthday party at The Boulder Cork, a fine dining restaurant in Boulder.
After that, she hoped to make it to the Colorado women’s basketball game against Utah State.
All of it follows a busy week of celebrations, including a party for her at the university on Sunday and a football game Saturday in which the sold-out crowd at Folsom Field sang “Happy Birthday” to her in unison, nearly bringing Sanders to tears on the field. He called it an “epic” moment.
“I had to turn away from the screen, because I was getting ready to cry,” said Sanders, whose Colorado team (8-2) plays Kansas (4-6) Saturday at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City. “And I didn’t want the opposing team to think they making me cry. No, it was Peggy.”
What Peggy means to Colorado football
Peggy shed her own tears of joy Saturday and has been a fixture at CU sporting events dating to around 1940. The university has estimated that she and her late twin sister Betty are estimated to have attended more than 2,500 CU sporting events over the decades. But after battling pancreatic cancer, Betty died in 2020, leaving a void for Peggy that still leaves her sad and reflective on the birthday they shared.
“It’s been unbelievable, all the attention,” Peggy told USA TODAY Sports by phone Monday before her birthday. “I feel very humble and very honored. I’m having a good time. The sad part is my sister is not here to do it with me, but everything’s going well. I’m in disbelief at all this attention. I feel so undeserving. I can’t believe I’ve been honored for just having a good time, just going to the games and everything.”
Peggy and Betty shared almost everything together, with both even marrying World War II pilots who went on to fly planes for United Airlines. After Peggy’s husband died in 1973, the two grew even closer and became famous as the twin CU fans who wore matching CU apparel to sporting events. As the surviving twin, she has become a symbol of CU sports and ‘the rock that holds us all together,’ Sanders said.
What’s the secret to Peggy’s Coppom’s long life?
She remains in good health after surviving a recent bout with COVID and broken hip before that. Her youngest son Dail told USA TODAY Sports she goes to church daily as an Irish Catholic and eats a pretty normal American diet such as oatmeal for breakfast and maybe a grilled cheese sandwich or hamburger later in the day. Her social activity helps, too, as does support from her family. She has three children, six grandchildren and six great-children, some of whom celebrated with her Monday night by reading her many birthday cards.
“When Betty died, everybody kind of took my mom under their wing, and they just love her,” Dail Coppom said. “It’s been really spectacular and amazing to watch this happen.”
That includes Sanders, who developed a friendship with Peggy shortly after his hiring at Colorado in late 2022.
“it’s amazing that God would find people from two different walks of life, two different generations and bring them together as he has,” said Sanders, 57. “She’s always greeted me with love, compassion, love, support, stability and hope.”
His embrace of her has elevated her national profile even more. She appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated last year and on Monday was featured on ABC News.
“It’s all unbelievable, so that that’s what he is − kind, unbelievable,” Coppom said of Sanders on Tuesday.
Peggy offers perspective on Colorado’s playoff run
Gratitude is a big part of her life formula, too. She even thanked the USA TODAY Sports reporter who called her the night before her birthday.
“I appreciate the call,” she said as the conversation ended. “Thank you very much and God bless you.”
But she didn’t say goodbye without answering one last question: How about those Buffs? How far will they go? They are gunning for the Big 12 Conference championship and a College Playoff berth just two years after finishing 1-11.
“Well, they can go as far as God wants them to,” she said. “We’ve been good losers long enough, and I want to be a good winner now for a while.”
Sanders also had a final question for her at the news conference Tuesday: Which bowl game does she want to go to?
“I’ll take anything they give us,” she said.
How can Colorado clinch a Big 12 berth?
Colorado is tied with BYU for first place in the Big 12 standings with a 6-1 league record. The Buffaloes can clinch a berth in the Dec. 7 conference championship game if they beat Kansas Saturday and both Arizona State and Iowa State lose this weekend. The Buffs would play BYU for the league title in this scenario.
Arizona State and Iowa State are tied for second place in the standings at 5-2 and play BYU and Utah Saturday, respectively.
The Buffs also could clinch a berth in the championship game if they win both of their final two regular-season games – at Kansas and at home against Oklahoma State Nov. 29.
How can Colorado get into the College Football Playoff?
If the Buffs win out and win the Big 12 championship Dec. 7, they would get a berth in the new 12-team College Football Playoff as one of the five highest-ranked league champions, according to current rankings. They could even earn a first-round bye as one of the four highest-ranked conference champions. A first-round bye would mean they would start playoff play in the quarterfinals Dec. 31 or Jan. 1, possibly in the Fiesta or Sugar Bowl.
A loss in the next three weeks could drop Colorado out of playoff contention and into a non-playoff bowl game such as the Holiday or Alamo Bowl.
“We wanted to get her to a bowl game,” Sanders said of Coppom. “Now we want to get her to the bowl game.”
Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com
The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.