While Colorado stars Shedeur Sanders, Travis Hunter and Shilo Sanders have all turned their on-field accomplishments into successful name, image and likeness projects, coach Deion Sanders doesn’t think money should be a primary recruiting tool.
“We’re not an ATM. That’s not going to happen here,” Sanders said during his Tuesday press conference. “If you’re coming to Colorado to play football for me and the Colorado Buffaloes, it’s because you really want to play football and get a great education and all business matters will be handled ultimately if that’s the case. case. But we’re not.” A vending machine. You don’t come here to get rich unless you really come here with the intention of going to the NFL and getting your degree…not coming here and being Moneybagg Yo. He’s a rapper, right?”
Deion Sanders took an unprecedented roster-building approach this past offseason, relying heavily on the transfer portal to overhaul his team. His main focus heading into year two will be to address Colorado’s depth and line of scrimmage issues, which were evident even during the team’s three-game winning streak to start the season. Shedeur Sanders has been sacked 16 times in those three games, and the Buffaloes are currently ranked last in the nation in sacks allowed per game at 4.91. While he will almost certainly welcome another batch of transfers this offseason to try to resolve those issues, he says he won’t get into bidding wars to attract talent.
“We’re not going to buy anyone,” he said. “That’s the way we approach things. We have huge needs. I’m pretty sure everyone in the country knows what we need and how much. It’s no secret. Recruits react.”
The Sanders effect is real. Despite its struggles over the final two months of the season, the program remained in the national spotlight as the sports world obsessed over the rebuilding job Sanders accomplished. That will be the selling point after he finishes the season Saturday and hits the transfer portal and high school recruiting trail.
“We want players who want us,” Sanders said. “Trying to convince someone and doing that and being held hostage financially…we don’t agree with that. We want players who want to be Colorado Buffaloes.”
Colorado and Utah will play Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m. ET in Salt Lake City, Utah.
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