It’s one thing to reach a high level of superstardom as a football player, becoming the greatest cornerback ever. But when you’re drawing comparisons to other iconic legends in various pursuits as a college football coach, you’re doing something right.
This is the case for Deion Sanders and the amount of attention and fandom he’s bringing to college football after taking over the reins at Colorado.
Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff also confirmed this at the Pac-12 media day recently when he spoke about the impact and influence Coach Prime has on the conference.
The Spun quoted him as saying, “Our ratings are going to be up this year because of Coach Prime. “He’s great for the league. He’s great for Colorado. You can see from where the team was last year to where they are this year.”
Pac-12 Commissioner Compared Deion Sanders to Beyoncé & Taylor Swift
The commissioner went further in describing the attention Sanders brings to the Pac-12 by comparing him to the music icons Beyoncé and Taylor Swift.
“I think if Beyoncé or Taylor Swift decided to coach, they might glean the kind of media coverage we’re getting from Deion.”
Those are some heavy words but being popular and bringing eyeballs to the Pac-12 is only half of the mission.
We know Coach Prime has swag, and a huge celebrity following, but the unknown element remains. How far can Sanders take Colorado? The better they are, the more attention the entire conference gets. We already know that Sanders has haters within the conference, same as he did while elevating Jackson State to unprecedented relevance on the national scene.
Understandably so, because not only did Sanders draw Beyoncé and Taylor Swift comparisons on this media day, but he also drew comparisons to Alabama’s Nick Saban, arguably the greatest NCAA football coach of all time.
Sanders’ newest defensive coordinator, Charles Kelly, who spent four years at Alabama, has high praise for what Sanders brings to the team.
The Colorado Buffaloes Wire quoted Kelly as saying, “There are a lot more similarities between coach Saban and [Deion Sanders] than there are differences,” Kelly told reporters.
“When I say that, I always say this: They are both very good men. They have conviction. When they believe in something, they fight for it,” Kelly said. “That is the sign of a good person. And they tell you the truth — not what you want to hear, but what you need to hear. They are very similar in that aspect.”
While Sanders is receiving high praise from left and right, he still has to win with Colorado and building a contending program after a 1-11 season won’t be easy. Success would be breaking even this season and then go from there.
