After Deion Sanders took the head coaching job at Colorado, critics started coming for him.
Many felt that Deion had broken his promise to JSU and HBCUs. Others saw it as the latest in a long line of selfish moves. And while many of his former players understood the situation, it appears that some of his incoming players took him up on his offer to play elsewhere.
Sanders spoke with Fox Sports’s Shannon Sharpe recently and offered his explanation for why so many people were mad at him for leaving Jackson State for Colorado. Now, he’s also shared the one big reason why he decided to take this job rather than pursue an FBS job elsewhere. Turns out, it comes down to one person.
.@DeionSanders explains why he picked Colorado over other Power 5 schools:
“Rick George is the reason I’m here, he was the difference. The honesty, his heart and passion for this University. He’s about winning.” pic.twitter.com/JXNZQxA2Pf
— Club Shay Shay (@ClubShayShay) December 21, 2022
“Rick George is the reason I’m here, he was the difference,” Sanders told Sharpe. “The honesty, his heart, and passion for this University. He’s about winning.”
Sanders continued, “He wanted to make change. He said they deserved a winner. He said I’m going to make sure this university wins before I leave there. That’s what he said.”
George has been the athletic director at Colorado since 2013 and the football program has gone 43-62 in that time. So whatever Sanders sees in George, it must go beyond the numbers. If he’s able to emulate the same success he had at JSU, we’ll know that he made the right decision.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.