Meet the dogs who brought joy in 2023 to Deion Sanders, Caleb Williams and Kirk Herbstreit

Colorado football coach Deion Sanders is ending the year as possibly the most followed and famous college coach in America in 2023, as judged by all the attention he got from his games, commercials, social media accounts, magazine covers and documentary series on Amazon Prime Video.

But even Sanders just wants to be alone sometimes, away from all of those eyeballs except for those of a certain special friend.

His name is Gunner, Sanders’ dog.

"You may not think it, but I’m pretty much a loner," Sanders said in an interview with USA TODAY Sports this month.

He said this from his expansive estate in Texas, where he initially traveled without family or human friends and instead had Gunner at his side in his office.

"They said dog is man’s best friend, and I don’t think they lied," he said.

Caleb Williams agrees. The Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback from Southern California made his feelings about this known in November when he said he just wanted to "go home and cuddle with my dog" after getting beaten on the field.

Kirk Herbstreit also can relate. The voice of college football for ESPN, Herbstreit travels to games with his dog, Ben, and recently became even more inseparable from him after having him registered as an emotional support animal.

Each helped make this season another Year of the Dog in college football, aside from the fact that the Washington Huskies are undefeated and trying to succeed the Georgia Bulldogs as national champions. Amid the grind of an up-and-down season, it’s because of all the support and joy these dogs gave behind the scenes to the biggest names in the game.

Here’s how:

Deion Sanders and his dog Gunner

Gunner is a Belgian Malinois, about 3 years old, part of a breed that is known for being a "world-class worker who forges an unbreakable bond with his human partner," according to the American Kennel Club.

Sanders, 56, knows this as the divorced father of five adult children. Gunner is often there next to him away from the spotlight, sometimes playing fetch with him at an empty Folsom Field in Boulder, as documented in a video posted on Instagram with the song "Just the Two of Us" playing in the background.

Sanders talks to him, too, as all good dog parents do. In Sanders’ case, last year he shared a conversation on social media.

Embedded content: https://www.instagram.com/p/CtAWwFTrTd8/

“Before my Belgian Malinois Gunner went to sleep he said to me, 'Can I tell u something?'" Sanders said on Instagram.

"I said sure."

"He said, 'I truly appreciate this lifestyle, my Sleeping arrangements, food and all. Thank u for choosing me, and I will protect u honor u and respect u.'"

"I said wow that was awesome, a awesome thing to say."

Sanders shared this with a photo of Gunner sleeping upside down with a smile on his face.

"What was he smiling in his Sleep about ???" Sanders asked.

Sanders also mentioned his dog this season when asked about speculation that he might leave Colorado for another coaching job somewhere else. A reporter had wanted to know what he should tell the parents of football recruits who wonder about his future.

"I tell 'em my mother’s here, my sister’s here, my dog is here," Sanders said in November.

In other words, home is where Gunner is, helping keep his life light and loved when Sanders gets to be himself, by himself, away and apart from the public persona known as "Prime Time" or "Coach Prime."

"He’s a companion," Sanders told USA TODAY Sports on Dec. 4, after his team finished the season with a 4-8 record. "You may not think it, but I’m pretty much a loner. Like I don’t mind − I’m in Texas right now on property, you know, hundreds of acres alone. I don’t have friends, family right here with me right now. I have caretakers who take care of the property, so I may get on a four-wheeler or a cart and ride around the property with Gunner. And I may go fishing, and Gunner’s right there. I may ride through the trails with Gunner. So that’s just a companion, man."

Caleb Williams and his dog Supa

Williams, 22, might become the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft next April after winning the Heisman last year and then earning another important title in 2023 – dog dad of Supa, an Olde English bulldog who is about 10 months old and shares a birthday with Williams’ father Carl. Williams named the dog after his football nickname "Superman" and drew from Supa’s superhuman support during a 7-5 season.

Williams made this especially known after his team suffered a 52-42 loss to Washington on Nov. 4. A reporter asked him then about his emotional state.

"I want to go home and cuddle with my dog and watch some shows," Williams replied.

Dog lovers around the world could relate, winning him new fans for keeping it real.

"It was honestly from the heart," Williams told USA TODAY Sports recently via email. "It was a tough game and all I could think about was just getting home, laying on the couch and watching tv with Supa and resetting for the next day."

Supa helps him every day.

"I love having Supa greet me when I get home, especially after long days of workouts and school," Williams wrote via email. "There is no judging. No questions. Just me and him chillin."

Supa also accompanied Williams to a photo shoot for GQ magazine that published in September with an article entitled "The New King of College Football." But it was Supa who stole the show.

"I’ve taken Supa all around LA with me," Williams said. "We always go for car rides and explore new places. It’s been really fun to bring him around campus and the football facility – everyone gets really excited to see him, and I like that he puts a smile on people’s faces. I even took him to my GQ photo shoot and he was the star of the entire crew."

He essentially serves as a sidekick with spirit.

"I’ve always loved having dogs in the house," Williams said. "Being out in LA I really wanted a dog and Supa really fits my vibe and personality. I always joke that he has the personality of a human – I love it!”

Kirk Herbstreit and his dog Ben

Herbstreit, 54, is a "big dog guy," as he told USA TODAY Sports in late 2020.

"I love to take walks with my dogs," he said then. "I have three golden retrievers. They’re basically like three more kids at our house the way we treat them."

Herbstreit took that treatment to a new level this season when one of those dogs, Ben, traveled with him by private plane to many of his destinations as a television analyst for ESPN and Amazon. He even recently had Ben registered as an emotional support animal, allowing Ben more freedom to accompany Herbstreit at various places on the road, where he’s frolicked on the field at games and even got to meet Uga, the live bulldog mascot of Georgia.

"Headed to the Windy City!" Herbstreit wrote on Instagram on Nov. 8, next to a photo of Ben looking out an airplane window. "He’s officially an ESA – has been that for 9 years but he’s 'official' now. Lucky to have him by my side this week!"

USA TODAY Sports wasn’t able to reach Herbstreit for further comment. But much of their journey has been documented on social media by Herbstreit, who last year showed how Ben reacted when he’d leave him at home when traveling for work.  

"Poor big fella," Herbstreit wrote on X in October 2022. "48 hours later Ben still at the front door waiting for my truck to pull in the driveway − Be home soon bud!"

A year later, Ben is now flying by jet to big-time games and staying in posh hotels.

"Not only is he easy to take on the road − dude just makes himself at home wherever we go & CHILLS!" Herbstreit wrote next to a photo of Ben sleeping on a hotel couch. “Scale of 1-10 on 'maintenance' he’s a 0."

Herbstreit recently added another golden retriever to the family, a puppy he said Ben is "slowwwwly warming up to."

'There's no better time to adopt'

This new family member − and these stories − served as reminder of how dogs need human homes and how much they give to them after they find one, especially during the holiday season. New estimates show there are nearly 245,000 additional pets waiting in the shelter system this holiday season compared to last year, according to Shelter Animals Count, a nonprofit that tracks such data.

"There’s no better time to adopt," the organization said in an email. "Most shelters and rescues in a recent survey say people would probably be surprised by the types of dogs and puppies they’re receiving."

The organization reported that more small-breed dogs, puppies, purebreds and "designer dogs" such as doodles, oodles and poos are arriving at shelters for the same reasons that other dogs do. It encouraged potential dog owners to check their local shelters and adoption databases such as AdoptAPet.com.

In the meantime, Caleb Williams has a simple answer to the question of what his own dog has meant to him since he brought him home:

"Supa has become a consistent positive thing in my life and a part of my family."

Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: [email protected]