Nobu Koga’s CU Story Runs Deeper Than Historic Gift
August 03, 2023 | Football, General, Buff Club, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Nobu Koga still remembers the exact night he became a Colorado Buffaloes football fan: Oct. 17, 1992.
The game — the first he ever attended — changed his life.
Now Koga wants to make sure other CU students in the future are afforded the same opportunity he enjoyed. Koga has committed to provide one of the largest gifts in Colorado Athletic Department history.
Koga's first CU football game saw the seventh-ranked and unbeaten Buffaloes rally from a fourth-quarter deficit to escape with a 24-24 tie against Oklahoma. It took a 53-yard Mitch Berger field goal in the final seconds to tie the game and send a sold-out CU crowd into a celebration.
For Koga, who was part of the CU student section, the game provided a revelation.
"As I was cheering for the Buffs along with other CU students, I realized that there was no boundary between me and them," said Koga. "I was looking around at the stadium and all the students and all the fans were sharing in the excitement. I felt like, 'Oh, OK.' For the first time, I felt like a part of the CU community and a part of American culture."
That assimilation did not come easily.
Koga, a native of Japan, had come to CU as an international student and spent the vast majority of his first year in Boulder with other foreign-born students. While he was no doubt aware of the popularity of Buffs football, he didn't really connect with the sport — until he actually attended a game.
"I knew the whole community was crazy about the national champions but I was not a big part of it," he said with a laugh. "I spent much of my time in Norlin Library with other members of the Asian community until midnight. That is where we gathered and felt comfortable."
But then CU's International Student Services program provided Koga and several of his friends with free tickets to the game. With their curiosity piqued, they decided to attend and see for themselves what the excitement was about.
Koga got a first-hand look at why people were so excited about the Buffaloes — and an introduction to a part of American culture that had previously been far out of his comfort zone.
"Coming from Tokyo and speaking very little English, I did not know a lot about American culture," he said. "I was struggling to fit in. But football made me part of Colorado. It helped me assimilate and be part of the entire CU student community."
Koga enjoyed the experience so much that he bought student season tickets for the next two seasons. It helped him establish a bond with a much larger group of students and he made friends with people he previously may have never even met.
"Because of football I felt like I became a part of American culture," Koga said. "It made me feel like a career in the United States was possible."
That possibility became a reality. After earning his international affairs degree at CU, he went to work on Wall Street.
There, he found that his love of college football continued to help him bridge cultural differences in the professional world.
"Football in the United States gave me another way to communicate with American people," Koga said. "We could talk about football. It went beyond the language. If you knew a little about football, you could get to know American people. It ended up becoming an important way for me to work with our clients. We could talk about football. That gave us common ground."
Koga started his professional career at Salomon Brothers, then obtained his MBA before joining JP Morgan as a private equity investment specialist across the Asian Pacific region.
In 2006, he went back to Japan, where he became co-founder/CEO of Integral Investments Inc., a Tokyo-based private equity investment firm. It has become one of the Asian Pacific's most successful businesses.
But American football still helps Koga establish bonds with his clients.
"Football goes beyond language," he said. "It gives people a connection. In America, if you knew about football, you could communicate with people. Now, I still have the bond of the CU Buffs wherever I go."
That bond — sparked by an ultra-successful college football program — is one Koga wants to help current and future CU students build. It is why he has become one of the largest individual donors in Athletic Department history.
"I want to show my appreciation for the department and the football team," Koga said. "I want CU kids to enjoy the power of the sport and what it can mean. I hope that this will help more CU students have the opportunity to have the feeling of being part of the community and culture."
Colorado officials are no doubt grateful for Koga's gift and appreciative of his story, one that illustrates how a successful football program can have far-reaching ramifications across the student body and community.
"I can't thank the Koga family enough for this transformational gift," said CU Athletic Director Rick George. "This investment from Nobu and his family will allow us to continue to provide a world-class experience for every student-athlete that steps foot in Boulder. We're incredibly excited about the Coach Prime era and this donation will allow us to achieve the goals we aspire for in our football program."
Leon Jackson III, Senior Associate AD/Vice Chancellor for Advancement, said Koga's story is one that exemplifies what athletics can accomplish in the university setting.
"Our Buff Club is honored to partner with Nobu and his family on this transformational investment," Jackson said. "Nobu's CU story proves that our work here in Boulder does truly change the world. We are incredibly thankful for his long-term partnership in our mission to transform the lives of 350-plus student-athletes here at the University of Colorado."
On a recent visit back to Boulder, Koga had the opportunity to meet Deion "Coach Prime" Sanders.
It proved to be a memorable meeting.
"I was taken to his office and they opened the door and I walked in," Koga said. "Then the door shut and it was just me and Coach Prime. I wasn't expecting that, but it was a very good meeting. I think he enjoyed my story."
Koga plans on making it back to Boulder for some games this fall. It will no doubt stir up memories of his first-ever game at Folsom Field and how that experience changed his life.
"Because of football, I have been able to be a part of mainstream American culture," he said. "I was a foreign student but I became part of the CU student community because of football. It was very important to me. I hope my contribution will help more students in the future have that experience."