The controversy surrounding Deion Sanders and his departure from Jackson State is still a very hot topic days later. Some people, especially those from the white community, want to know why.
They want to know why Black people are upset that Sanders is doing what so many other coaches before him have done to improve their personal situation. Here’s the difference: Sanders said his move to the SWAC and Jackson State was to help bring more attention to Black colleges and athletic programs.
https://twitter.com/JoPrestonTV/status/1600126268187590656
He did bring more attention to them, but he moved on to greener pastures by leaving for a predominately white FBS college, which is what made some people angry. Promises were made and then broken, and a lot of folks feel as if they were used by Coach Prime to further his career.
Frankly, they are right.
The issue is not really about him leaving. It’s about breaking his word to people who believed in what he was doing and what he was selling. Kids like Travis Hunter, who turned down a scholarship offer from Florida State to join Prime in Jackson, Mississippi because of what he said. What happens to him now?
It’s understandable why Sanders left for Colorado. It’s a lot more money and more exposure. It offers better facilities. And it gives him a chance to coach in a major conference.
But he never should have made all those promises if he had no plans to keep them. That’s the issue here for SWAC and HBCU fans.
A lot of HBCU grads had convinced themselves that Sanders was a man of his word. When others tried to warn them of what they were getting, they didn’t want to hear it. Now they have no choice.
Deion Sanders is not SWAC and never was.
About Stacey Mickles
Stacey is a 1995 graduate of the University of Alabama who has previously worked for other publications such as Sportskeeda and Saturday Down South.